"Now.... imagine the weight of the ball in your
mind... feel it in your hands without touching it," Kyp told Siee.
He and she were sitting in conform cushins in
their doorways, facing eachother across the hall.
"Ok..." She
closed her
eyes and imagined the ball lifting. "light as a feather..." she
muttered as a single sweatdrop fell down her face.
He watched impassively, a smile blossoming when
it slowly began to rise into the air. It was about time too, they'd
been working on this for three days now.
She started to
pant, her eyes clenched shut. "I'm not doing it, am I?"
"Open your eyes," he said softly so she wouldn't
lose her concentration.
She blinked them
open, then gasped. Instantly the ball fell to the ground. "I did it!"
He grinned, "That you did, Lady Wraith. That you
did. Now, do it again."
"Oh-kay." She
closed her eyes again and did the same thing as before.
It rose more easily, then he started to use the
Force to give it a slight counter-pressure.
"No fair," she
stated, pushing her hair back. She started to push it towards him.
"I'm not supposed to be fair, I'm supposed to be
helping you." He pushed a little bit more toward her direction, testing
her strength.
She gritted her
teeth. "I just figured out how to levitate the thing. You're supposed
to throw me a party, not try to push it down!" she pushed it back
towards him.
"I'll throw you a party if you can get the ball
in my room," he retorted with laughter in his voice.
Millimeter by
millimeter she moved it towards him. "It's like pushing against a wall!"
"Hey, I'm trying to make it easy for you!"
"You call this
easy?!" she laughed.
He pushed harder against the ball, easily pushing
it
into her lap and holding it there, "Yes."
She grabbed the
ball and tossed it at him with her own power. "I hate you," she pouted.
He caught it in his hand, "I"m sorry."
She laughed. "I
was kidding Kyp." She levitated the ball and let it hit his forehead.
He blinked then smiled slightly, "Sorry, I'm
still learning." He grabbed the ball and set it on the floor between
them. "I promise to be fair... I won't use any more force than you do.
She grinned. "I'm
getting tired of this. Can we try a different skill?"
"Like which? Endurance?"
Siee chcukled.
"Maybe. What you have in mind?"
He shrugged, "A run through the Jungle?"
"But it looks bad
out there, like it's going to storm any moment."
"So?"
"My hair will get
wet."
"It'll dry." He shrugged, "or we could test endurance by going
to the cafeteria...."
"Jungle!" she
stated, jumping up.
He stood, "I thought so, c'mon," he waved her to
a little used hallway out of the temple, so they wouldn't have to
encounter other students. Kyp'd learned many of these routes to avoid
confrontation.
Siee worked to
pull on
her robe while chasing after him. "Wait up!"
He stopped and waited for her. "You coming?" he
smiled.
"Yeah yeah yeah,
double underwear man. Just cause you're always prepared doesn't mean I
am." She slipped a vibroblade into her boot holster and looked at him.
"How the heck do you know about that?!"
"Oh um...
remember back on the Venture?" she started off on a slight jog.
He jogged along side her, "Yeah....?"
"Well...you slept
for two days... I had to make you more comfortable."
He blinked, "You mean, you...."
"I didn't want
you to hurt yourself in boots and full flightsuit. It's your fault you don't wear anything underneath."
He blushed mightily. "Stang...." They jogged down a little used
path, "My apologies."
"It's ok. I like
the ones with moons on them." She laughed and took off faster.
He stopped in his tracks as his jaw dropped, then
he
took off chasing after her. "SIEE!"
Laughter rang
though the forest.
He tried to bring up her sense in the Force, and
laughed as he chased after her.
"He's Kypster the
mighty, he's really funny, wears two pairs of underwear, and he's
getting some gray hairs... thinks he's really got it made... but he has
never been..."
A huge thunder clap drowned her last words out
Kyp continued to chase after her, the two going
further and further away from the Temple. "Siee, just you wait until I get
my hands on you!" he cried, and then... the clouds burst, and he
slipped and slid as he ran along.
Siee skidded to a
stop. She realized suddenly that she was lost. She turned around and
tried to reach out like Kyp had been teaching her, but she couldn't
figure out what she was sensing. "Kyp?" The rain started to fall and she bundled up. "Kyp?!"
"Siee!" he called for her. He could tell she was
worried, but he couldn't quite pinpoint her presence.
The wind wouldn't
let her hear anything. "KYP!" she cried, then took off towards what
looked like the temple. This far away, and the storm, made it look
black.
Kyp kept calling her, while trying to find her in
the
Force. He hated these storms, they were such dampers. When he finally
found her, he
realised she was wandering further away. He tried to send her a feeling
to
stay put and it'd be alright.
Siee felt the
feeling and stopped. ~Kyp, I'm scared!~ she shouted in her mind, hiding
behind a tree. Then she saw it... two glowing eyes. ~KYP!~ she pulled
out her vibroblade quickly.
~Siee, I'm coming, stay put!~
~HURRY~ she sent.
Then the beast stood on it's hind legs and bared it's fangs as it
howled.
Kyp saw it, and cursed to himself. He put on an
extra burst of speed, and with a -snaphiss- his lightsabre ignighted.
He used the Force to push the beast away from
Siee, and then used his lightsabre to kill it. He then stood over the beast,
breathing heavily, trying to catch his breath, the lightsabre still lit
as he held it in his hand. He watched its life ebb, but did not move
while it yet twitched in the death throes.
Siee stood
against the tree, the vibroblade in her hand. She had survived Dander
attacks and Imperials, but she was frozen against the tree right now.
When the beast stopped twitching, Kyp finally
turned off his lightsabre and clipped it to his belt, he approached
Siee.
She was breathing
hard, her body trembling.
Rain dripped from them, both soaked in the
downpour. Impulsively, Kyp reached out and drew her to him, putting his
arms around her and holding her closely, smoothing her hair in a
comfourting gesture.
Siee trembled
against Kyp. "What... I... " she dropped the blade and started to cry.
"Shh... It's okay, you're alright. I'm sorry I
didn't keep up with you, but you're safe now. I won't ever let anything
happen to you," he could hardly believe his words, they just came out
without thought.
She just hugged
him tighter,
tears streaming down her face, mixing with the rain.
He continued smoothing her hair, holding her
gently, murmering words of assurance to her.
"That thing.. it
could have killed me," she whimpered. "I have faced all types of
beasts... and I almost let that one kill me..."
"Know this... I won't ever let anything
happen to you, Siee," he pulled back slightly and tipped up her chin so
she
could look in his eyes and see how serious he was.
She blinked. She
was still caught up in the fear of the moment she didn't know what to
do. She sniffled and blinked away another set of tears.
"I promise," he said softly. Then he did
something he'd never done before. Something impulsive, intuitive. He
leaned down and gently brushed his lips against hers.
Siee gasped and
pulled back for a moment. "Kyp?"
He blinked, as though suddenly realising what he
did... and he stepped back looking at his feet. "Sorry, I... I didn't-."
Siee blinked,
then grabbed Kyp again and pulled him close, kissing him gently.
Now it was his turn to be surprised.... and a
lightning like feeling shot through him. His eyes drifted shut and he
hesitatingly
pulled away before he looked down at Siee. Only
just now beginning to realise the reason behind most of his actions.
"Come on," he said
quietly. "Let's get back before we catch cold." His eyes didn't leave
hers.
Siee nodded
mutely, then
snuggled into him for warmth as they walked back.
Kyp kept an arm wrapped about her shoulders,
leaving his sword hand free should they be attacked again. But they
were not, and soon were within the confines of the Temple.
She didn't leave
his side until they reached their rooms. Only then did she slip away,
drawing her wet robe around her.
Kyp said nothing, just watched her close her
door, before disappearing into his own room to change into some dry
clothes.
*
Kyp quickly changed into dry civilian clothing,
and toweled his hair mostly dry. Then he opened his door, in case Siee
needed him, and sat in the middle of the floor to meditate. He needed the
calming influence of meditation to explain what the heck was going
on...
try to get his heart to talk to his head.
Siee also had
changed out of her clothing and was now in a gift Wes had sent up. He
had
found a Jedi robe in the lower levels... silk lined. Seems someone had told her brother of her chafing
probs... or Corran had given him a helpful suggestion. She snuggled up
to it
now, and curled up in her bed, trying to think.
Finally, after an hour of calming, he got up the
courage to get up and go over and knock quietly on her door. He was so
confused, and she was his only link to 'normalcy'.
"Come in Kyp,"
came
the soft answer.
Quietly he opened the door, but he didn't enter
the room. He was dressed in a simple black tank and pants, his feet
bare, his hair still damp. "Hi." he said quietly.
"Hey."
He was silent a few moments before speaking
again. "What happened?" Confusion was written all over his face.
"That was called
kissing."
"It just kinda... happened. I... I don't
understand," his eyebrows drew together and upward in confusion. He
didn't know what a feeling like that meant.
She sat up and
folded her hands into her lap. "You don't have to appologize, Kyp. I
should be the one doing that."
He kept hovering near the doorway, his eyes
questioning her. With
a sigh he moved forward to sit on the bed beside her. "Why did you kiss
me after I kissed you?" he asked. "You should have hit me."
"I dunno. Felt
right." She shrugged.
He looked down at his hands, and confessed -
"I've never kissed anyone before," he said softly. "I'm still not quite
sure why I did."
Siee rubbed her
feet along her ankles. "Most people do it when they like others...
though for me I haven't had that luxury in a long time."
"Why not?" he turned on the bed to look at her
curiously. "I mean, you told me about all that other stuff - but any
man would be an idiot not to-" he cut off and looked back down at his
hands with a blush.
Siee looked at
him curiously. "You don't find me ugly?"
"Why would I find you ugly?" He blinked in surprise.
"I'm covered from
neck to toes in scars. Not something nice to look at."
He shrugged, "They're only scars," he told her.
"Yeah, big white
lines that pop out from my skin and make bumps when anyone touches
them."
"But they're not *you*."
"What do you
mean?"
"Forgive my being blunt, but you're a beautiful
person. You're wonderful to look at, and your *self* is the most
amazing person I've ever met." He was blushing and looking at his hands
as he spoke honestly.
"You care about who a person is, not what they've
done, or what they look like. You..." he paused and then looked up at
her. "Maybe it's because I'm so isolated, but I've never met anyone
like
you."
Siee blinked. She
could feel the honesty, the emotions radiating off Kyp through the
Force. Never had she felt such emotions... *this Force does have good
points*
she thought.
She didn't know
how
to answer him, so instead she reached up and gently traced a hand along
his cheek, over his ear and down his neck.
He lifted a hand to hold hers in his. "I've never
had feelings like I do right now - and it's terrifying me.... but I
like it." He smiled shyly.
"Now's the time when you slug me for my
impertinance," he half joked. He fully expected her too, as well.
She playfully
"punched" him in the mouth. "There, that what you want?" she asked.
"You want to know what I want?" he asked her.
Siee closed her
eyes and read him through the Force. "I think I know..." she said
teasingly.
"Good, then you won't be surprised when I do
this." For the second time that day, he was impulsive.... and with one
hand still holding her's against his heart, he shyly brushed his lips
against hers.
Siee accepted his
lips, gently caressing his with her own. She closed her eyes and let
her other hand go up to play in his hair.
His free hand came up to cup her cheek as he
chastely kissed her again, and again.
After a few
moments, Siee pulled herself away with a small grin on her face.
"Wow..."
He sighed slightly and opened his eyes to look in
hers, "My thoughts exactly...." he whispered.
She grinned. "You
sure you didn't do any of this before on Kessel?" she teased.
"You're the only person I've ever kissed... I
don't think my mom counted," He smiled hesitatingly. "Forgive my inexperience."
"Well then,
You're a natural." She kissed him again quickly. "And if that's
inexperiance, I can't wait till you get some practice."
His eyes twinkled, "Only if you're the one
teaching me."
"But of course.
All part of the teaching about real life gig and all." Her eyes
twinkled.
He lifted the hand he'd been holding against his
chest, and kissed it. "You'll find me a willing student, Lady Wraith."
"First thing we
need to find is a Force damper... otherwise I think Master Skywalker
will be seperating us quite quickly."
"When it storms here, I'm not sure why, it
dampens the Force..." he looked away guiltily, "That's why it took me
so long to get to you earlier."
"How often does
it storm?" she wiggled her eyebrows.
"You haven't noticed?" he canted his head to one
side as he looked at her.
"Nope."
"Just about every day... most often at night,
though somtimes in the afternoon like now." He canted his head to one
side, "It's still storming."
"Then let's not
waste a good storm." She grinned and kissed him again softly.
The door to the room shut quietly as Kyp brought
his arms up to embrace her.
