Ask Nar Shaddaa Swelling Tides

[Kyosuke Yamato]

Kyo wasn't really confident he could actually keep her safe. The galaxy was a pretty ruthless place, and they would be wise to avoid a good chunk of it...

But this light he felt when he was with her. The beat of her heart, the pace of her breath, both adjusting to meet his. He couldn't let her fade. He couldn't let her spark be snuffed out before she had a chance to shine. Not even for as long as he was able to protect her, or for as long as she was able to do the same for him.

The conflicted Shadow would gradually pull back, letting his arms fall away from her while he shyly covered his chest with his cloak again. He would then use his free hand to gently pat the top and front of her blanket hood, being careful not to touch her lekku. If she tried to pull away then he would stop and apologize. Either way he would continue. "It's alright, consider us even for the 'special' you got me last night." ... 'We are so not even for that.' He'd try to hold back more blush and his actual feelings on the ambush.

After a moment of looking down into her pearl gaze with a slightly forced and faint smile on his lips he'd then turn a bit to grab one of the reheated lumps of Bantha meat. "Seela... we're going to have to be careful pretty much everywhere we can go in the galaxy, between both of our backgrounds. And I'm probably gonna have to teach you to hunt. So..." He'd lean back to her, holding the thick chunk of meat out to her. "So you're gonna have to get used to the taste of stuff like -- this." He'd jiggle the meat for comedic effect, not at all realizing how immature it might've looked, or if she'd even eaten something like it before. 'She's probably had worse actually...'

"If you've already eaten since last night then you only need to take a bite, though you can have as much as you want. If you haven't eaten much since then, then at least try to eat this whole piece." His bright blue eyes narrowed at hers, having changed to something a little more serious and a bit less playful than what he'd had a moment ago. "Also, some water might help with that." He teased and nodded to the durasteel counter that contained some bottled containers for drinking.

"Either way, I'm not going to eat until you do." He challenged her for a number of reasons. He wanted to see if she was willing to eat the meat, if she cared enough for him to do it, if she had been eating, and if she had been so conditioned by her upbringing that she might accept pretty much any command -- essentially becoming a liability when dealing with other people. He'd do his best to help her recover from those two, if he happened to determine either was the case through a few more tests he'd have to try on her.


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela was working on regaining her composure, when she felt Kyosuke softly pat the top of her head, which felt oddly comforting. She would have to reflect on that later. In fact, she would have to think and reflect on a lot of things in the near future. All these new feelings, and experiences, and also the fact thaat her whole life had been turned upside down too... She wans't used to that much thinking! Quite the opposite, actually! Seela had been taught from very early on that thinking for herself generally resulted in bad things, and made her unhappy, so she tended to avoid thinking as much as she could, in the past.
Seela was a bit confused by what Kyosuke meant with considering them even, but she decided to let it go for now, and to ask at another time, if she remembered.
She had already assumed that going around as a runaway slave would be tricky, but now Seela was curious about the mysterious background Kyosuke just mentioned. Seela also realised that she knew very little about the man, beside his name, and his apparent wealth.
Learning to hunt would be good! Hunting was useful! Being able to find food by her own means, meant she wouldn't have to always buy it from cities. Since they had to be careful around people, not having to rely on civilisation for food was a good thing.
The meat actualy looked good to her! Admitedly, pretty much anything would look good, compared to whatever scraps she was fed her entire life! Plus, meat was supposedly very nutritious, so she was far from complaining!
Seela wasn't really sure when the last time she ate meat was. And she hadn't eaten at all in a while, probably not since early morning the day before, after the club had closed... She wasn't really hungry, but Seela wasn't one to turn down the offer of food!

"I'll gladly eat this, food is always good! Hunting is a good skill to learn... "

Seela snatched the food from Kyosuke's fingers, happily munching on it, then remembered he had teased her about water, so between two mouthfuls, she muttered, looking down.

"I was going to go back for the water after giving you the food... but... "

That man had some weird split personality thing going on, or some impressive mood swings! From an adorably incredibly shy and flustered young boy, to a crazy daredevil swinging across gaps, to a typical rich kid, to shy and innocent, to a confident and assertive man, to a sad lost kid... Honestly, it was almost dizzying! It also made him harder to read, less predictable... It had been quite a bit of time since she had been that unsure of how to act to please someone! For now, she shook herself out of her toughts, and squared up a tiny bit, reacting to his challenge in her own way, wiggling what was left of the chunk of meat towards him for emphasis, before continuing to munch on it.

"Well, I am eating, now your turn!"

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

'Well, she seemed to like it, so at least it's not like I'm ordering her to do something she doesn't like. Not that I should really be ordering her at all...' Kyo watched the girl closely, trying to analyze her actions and the way she responded, when suddenly he heard the grumble from beneath his abs again. "Well, a deal is a deal."

The young Knight, who already seemed to be fluctuating more rapidly between dominating and submissive mindsets than yesterday, and also didn't seem to be aware of it, took a chunk of the meat Seela had prepared for him. He'd then softly blow on the meat while he held one side with his thumb and pointer, then would raise it up sightly and begin to eat away at the tip he'd blown on.

He'd take a couple bites of the tender meat, chewing with an exaggerated expression as he looked at Seela from the corner of his eye like it wasn't the easiest thing to scarf down. "This-" He'd swallow so he could talk to her without his mouth being full. "Mm. This stuff isn't so bad, right? I'm sure it's not the best thing you've ever had, but it can't be the worst either."


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Watching Kyosuke eat carefully, despite his grumbling stomach, Seela added it as another proof that he had been raised amidst wealth.
His next assumption puzzled her, what did he think she had to eat? Fresh food was absolutely the best food she had! She grew up on scraps and rations!

"Well, I find it really good, actually! It's not rations, it hasn't started to go bad, it's not dried out scraps... I think that aside the rare times when I got to have a piece of fresh fruits, this is the best food I have eaten!"

Having finished her piece, Seela liked her fingers clean, then got up to go get Kyosuke a water bottle.

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

"The best you've ever eaten?" Kyosuke stopped for a moment, finishing off the last bit of meat he was holding before he began to look for something to wipe his fingers off on. "They must not have fed you too well. And judging from your size, they probably didn't feed you much or very often either." He then scanned her up and down again as he waited for her to return. "Cause I mean... To be working that kinda job..." A tiny bit of blush appeared on his cheeks.

"I mean, you have to be at least old enough for that sorta stuff... Right?" He wasn't exactly aware of all the sexual intricacies that the girl would've been raised to perform, but he had always been under the impression that dancers at shady establishments at least had to be a certain legal age limit to do what they did. Not that Nar Shaddaa was known for following the rules.


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela was a little astonished at seemingly how clueless Kyosuke was. Visibly, he grew up very sheltered! Seela felt a little bad that she might shatter his view of the universe, but staying this oblivious wouldn't help him down the line!
Grabbing a bottle and the rag that was on the fridge's handle, she went back and sat on the couch.

"Well... yeah, slaves aren't treated the same as free people... We are legaly not even people! On some planets, you can get a worse punishment for stealing one bantha than for beating someone else's slave to death! Kark, people can legaly do anything to a slave, as long as they own them!"

Stars have mercy!

How much was she going to have to open his eyes to reality? His cluelessness could be cute, but it was mostly sad!

"Well, I don't know if there is an age restriction for free people being hired to dance and such, different species age differently... I'm not sure of my age, but I have been working at the club for more than 5 years, and before that, I was on nal hutta, being trained in the brothels for a few more years... maybe 3 years... so... I'm pretty sure there is no age restriction for slaves."

Seela was definitely not going to tell him about the younger ones, that weren't publicaly displayed, kept elsewhere by Master, in case a customer had special needs and the money to back it up...

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

"I mean I get the slave thing... Kinda..." He nodded graciously as he took the bottle and rag. "It's just that..." He looked away as he rolled the rag between his fingers to clean them. "I don't know what goes on after all that stuff. It's all made out to be like it's supposed to be some super pleasant experience or something, but..." Kyosuke stopped, shook his head, dropped the rag on the table and took a swig of the water. He hesitated for another moment while he washed down the leftover bits of meat in his mouth.

It was difficult for him to gauge how to tell her the rest, since he couldn't find a balance with where his head was at, though he was beginning to suspect she already knew he was pure and still had his innocence. "I've never done any of that stuff... And I found it be..." He paused again, then turned his azure gaze to Seela. "I dunno, kinda stimulating I guess, but also..." His brows arched down as he tried to understand how the event made him feel deep within. "...kinda... frightening... Is it always like that?"


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela listened to the man, nodding to the confirmation of her suspicions, giving him plenty of time to voice his toughts. She wasn't sure how to answer his question...

"Well, the unknown is often scary, I guess... hmmm... I would say eventually you get used to it, and it stops being scary. The more you try to fight it, the more painful it can be... On the other hand, the clients always seem to enjoy themselves, and it seems to be quite a pleasurable experience for them... it's never been that way for me, so I wouldn't really know..."

Seela wasn't confident in her ability to teach Kyosuke about sex. Sure, she could probably show him how to fake pleasure, the best ways to please people, and such other things, but she couldn't teach him about things she didn't know, such as pleasure, could she?
Plus, she really didn't feel like traumatizing the poor lad further than she already did today...

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

"Huh..." The look on his face was again of a mixed expression. His gaze fell to the floor, and he cupped his chin while he thought about the things the girl was telling him. 'So she never really enjoyed any of it either... Then it can't be that great... Can it?' He looked back at the girl, trying to hide his blush as he thought about engaging in the activity with her so that she might be able to break him in and teach him more.

'But if she didn't like it then I probably shouldn't push it on her... And I'm not even sure I'd like it either given how it sounds...' The thought lingered on the edge of his mind, causing his cheeks to flush bit by bit as he tried to imagine what actually happened during the steamy encounters to make it so pleasurable and appealing. Then the orgy flashed through his mind and a chill ran up his spine. The boy quivered and rubbed his arms shyly as he shook his head and stared at the floor. "Let's... Let's not worry about that for now..."


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela was relieved to see Kyosuke decide to let this specific subject go, as both of them were uncomfortable about it! Scrounging in her brain for another subject, she was reminded of the night before, when he somehow healed the cut he made to take the implant out.

"I just remembered! I wanted to ask you something! Hum... It might seem weird, but bear with me, ok? So, sometimes lately, I've felt new things, like warmth, or light, coming from people, but like... Not physical? And then, yesterday, you somehow healed me... I don't even know what I'm asking... Just... You might know things I don't?"

Seela looked at her lap, playing with her finger nervously. What if he tought she was crazy? A freak?

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

"You don't know about the Force?" The boy snapped out of his repeating memory of the dream and night prior after he figured out what it was Seela had been describing, and feeling. 'Hopefully that's what she's talking about.' If it was the Force she was taking about, which was more than likely, then she was clearly sensitive to it. Realizing he might've accidently belittled her slightly for her completely natural and understandable lack of knowledge on the subject.

"I guess that makes sense actually. I didn't really know about it either until the Jedi found me." He then narrowed his gaze toward her, gradually beginning to pull away from his timid side once again as he thought about how much he should actually tell her. Plausible deniability might keep her safe in the shifting tide of power that was beginning to consume the galaxy.

"It's like a field of energy that moves through everything in the galaxy, binding us all together." He paused for a beat and would try not to look so gloomy as he finished, "-but it doesn't really do a good job of binding people together. For some reason, if people aren't careful, it tends to tear them apart instead..." He'd leave it at that for the moment, unless she seemed ready to learn more.


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela was relieved to know he wouldn't drop her off at the nearest mental institution, but at the same time, his jab kinda hurt! Like dude, there's so much that she doesn't know! Does that make her stupid?
Then, Kyosuke admitted he didn't know about it for a while either... hypocrit much?

"So it's called... the Force? And is... everywhere? Not sure I follow your binding people thing... "

Seeing him become darker in his demeanor, Seela remembered, when she went to get the blanket the day before, she felt a cold creepy feeling in the hallway... could it be?

"So, like, sometimes I feel that... Force, coming from people... the warmth I mentioned... but yesterday, when I went to your quarters the first time, when I came out in the hall, I felt something... different... It was cold... syrupy... it creeped me out a little... it felt... dark? Could it have been the Force?"

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

"Yes, and it sounds like it was probably the Dark Side of the Force at that." The Shadow's expression became stern and serious. "One should be aware of the Dark Side, but never devote themselves to it." His eyes shimmered and darkened. "Anger. Fear. Aggression." He let out a shaky breath and closed his eyes, completely aware of the fact he'd been letting too much of those very emotions get to him lately.

After a moment he would then refocus on the teachings of his ex-Master and reopen his gloomy yet reassuring eyes. "They are the Dark Side, and they flow easily." The Knight's tone was calm, deep, focused. "If you start down that path, it will dominate your destiny... And consume you." His dark azure gaze didn't leave Seela's, emphasis sinking in more and more with each word as he reached the end of the little spiel.

Kyosuke then paused and held his serious expression, slightly narrowing his gaze and brows over the course of the next couple seconds as he withdrew as much of the Light around them as he could, so that the Dark could begin to creep its way back through the aft hall and to the lounge. The young man's eyes would slowly shift back and forth across Seela as he would study her reaction to see how she felt about the Dark Side, and hopefully he'd also be able to gauge whether or not she was interested in it. Though, he hoped she didn't have any intentions of using it. 'Maaaybe should've finished telling her about Heal and the Light Side first.'


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela was happy to be getting explanations to all those things she didn't understand. Alright, Dark Side : bad. That was fine, she didn't like the dark anyway!
Upon Kyosuke's next words, Seela started to feel unsettled about his intensity on the subject. She felt threatened, for the first time since meeting him.

"Alright, alright!!! Dark Side Bad! Got it!!! Sorry!!!"

Now truly disturbed by the man's unwavering gaze, Seela started to back away from him, starting to worry for her immediate safety.
Then, the Twi'lek shivered, realising she was starting to feel the dark thing creep towards her again, and she knew she didn't want anything to do with it. Truly scared, Seela proceeded to back herself up so much that she ended on the floor, plastered in the corner furthest away from the hallway, crouching in a little ball, doing what she could to protect herself, and hiding in the blanket. She didn't want to be there anymore! Seela very much missed her life under Master, suddenly!

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

'Definitely shouldn'tve started with the Dark Side.' The young Knight went to stop and brace her, but then realized it might be better to let her pull away for the moment. As soon as Seela tried to find the nearest corner, she would trigger the sensors at the entrance to the forward hall that connected the lounge to the bridge. The dim lights in the intersection and length of the four-way hall around her would kick up and brighten a few notches, illuminating the lavender Twi'lek in a soft blue glow.

"Remember, fear will only make it worse-" He felt like a hypocrite, but tried to keep a calm and collected demeanor nonetheless as he started to get up from the couch. "-but there is something that can make it better." Kyo stood, positioning himself between Seela and the aft hall, blocking it from her view as best he could. A flicker of light gleamed across his azure orbs and brightened them.

"The Light Side of the Force. The warmth you say you can feel coming from people. It exists within you, too." Kyo would then close his bright blues, and begin to release the Light he'd withdrawn, guiding the flow outward in all directions to shine like a beacon for her and slightly repel some of the Dark around them. "Compassion. Mercy. Calmness." He considered saying "happy thoughts", but wondered if that would backfire.

"Close your eyes. Breathe deep. And clear your mind... Relax. Take all the time you need." He'd intentionally leave some of the Dark Side in the area around them, so that he could see whether or not she was capable of drawing upon the Light enough to push away the rest of the Dark nearby herself. "You got this."


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela jumped a little, distracted from her fear by the lights coming on. It jostled her just enough that she was able to hear and take in what Kyosuke was saying.

Fear makes it worse? Well I'm doomed, then!

Oooh, yeah, the warm light! Seela liked that part! So, Light makes Dark go away... Sounds logic!
Oh, so she could make her own light? Well, better start trying, uh!
Seela closed her eyes, and went in that state where she could sense things. There, she was nearly blinded by Kyosuke's light. Seela focused, because just taking that light and making it hers didn't seem like what she was supposed to do. She let the warmth chase the cold that chilled her bones, basking in it and the feelings it brought her.

Safe. Warm. Fluffy?

It took time, but finally, Seela tought she found it. Unlike Kyosuke's warmth, which felt like soft sunlight, what Seela felt was more like the warmth of a candle? A small flame, closer to her than the sun.
Just as she got lost in the comparisons, like a small flame, her light didn't hold strong, and went out.
Seela wasn't scared as much anymore, more comfortably sitting on the floor, still in her blanket cocoon. She looked at Kyosuke, pouting.

"It went out..."

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

"Not bad. For your first time." Kyo wasn't trying to be rude or anything, but it's not like he was great with other people. "We'll move on from this for now, but first let me just..." He took in a deep breath, centering himself as he turned his attention away from Seela's wavering candle of Light, and focused on the rest of the Dark that lurked around the edges of the lounge and nearby halls.

It would take the Shadow a couple moments before he was able to draw upon enough Light to push away the rest of the Dark near them, once again forcing it back into the aft hall. 'Gonna have to get back to that later...' He thought about how he should wait for a different opportunity to finish the lesson with Seela, and how he should get back to pouring the Light into his Knight Lurker Armor since he'd been neglecting to do so for much longer than usual. Not that it was the sole reason the Dark had been able to creep up on them.

After a few more moments, Kyo would rest his form, calmly exhaling with a deeper breath than usual like some kind of heavy wave slowly washed through him. His eyes gradually began to open, revealing countless bits of light that shimmered and danced across his bright blue orbs for a brief few seconds, before they faded away and left him with his usual brightness. His eyelids were half-closed, gaze straight ahead and lowering toward Seela bit by bit. "It's okay, Seela. You did good."


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela wasn't convinced she really did good. After all, here she was, barely able to get a flickering flame for a few seconds, and he was just... having the output of a karking sun! And didn't seem remotely phased by it too!
But hey, it WAS her first time, and he probably had training in that sort of things, so who knows, maybe she should stop thinking too much, and just accept his praise? Hm... Besides, his praise made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and she quite liked feeling that!
Blushing slightly, Seela bowed her head, feeling a little bashful, bringing the blanket up to hide her darkening cheeks.

"T-thank you... So, now what next?"

@AdventCore

 

[Kyosuke Yamato]

"Well... That depends on how much more you want to learn for now." The Knight let off one more deep and focused breath, letting his concentration and hold on the Light begin to fade. The Dark wouldn't begin to creep back in at this point, as long as Seela stayed away from the passenger room that was across from the refresher near the end of the aft hall.

Kyosuke would then gradually make his way back to the couch with no haste, taking his time while he carefully went to seat himself so that he wouldn't trigger any sore spots. "You did ask about the healing so..." He'd wince for a moment, feeling the laceration ping at his side from the motion of transitioning to the cushions. "That was different... Instead of tapping into the Light Side to heal your wound, I just transferred some of my life energies into you instead... It's still using the Force, but in a different way than what we just did."


@Ahryia

 

[Seela]

Seela hurriedly stood up to help support Kyosuke to the couch, turning her toughts in her mind.

"Well, I will glady learn all that you are willing to teach! And about that healing, I thank you for it, and explaining it, but are you really that inconsiderate of your own life?!?"

Aggravated, Seela flicked his ear, with a finger, frowning and slightly pulling on the ends of her lekkus, willing herself to have patience, and letting the slight incomfort ground her.

"You are telling me that while seriously injured, and needing every bit of energy you possessed, you decided to use a considerable amount to seal up a small cut that barely bled, and would have healed just fine in a few days?!?!"

@AdventCore