RPlog:Jessalyn and the Force

Calamari Coral City -- Coral Gardens With one glance it is impossible to drink in the wonderous sight before you. What was once an ocean has receded, leaving in plain view one of nature's architectural masterpieces, a coral reef, it's creamy pink shapes silently jutting into the air. Surrounding the coral are benches, water fountains and lush trees, providing plenty of shady spots under which to rest. Here children are seen scurrying about, their parents keeping a close watch, their laughter harmonizing with the sound of falling water and the chirping of birds. Some people can be seen enjoying a pleasant conversation, refreshing themselves with the fountain's cool sparkling water, strolling by the sidewalk or simply admiring the reef. The Coral Gardens also serves as a meeting place for merchants or business persons who prefer the tranquility of the locale to discuss potential trades or to work out differences. To the east the faint sounds of the busy Coral Avenue can be heard. -=-=-=-=-=-=<>=-=-=-=-=-=- => Coral Sculpture                 -=-=-=-=-=<>=-=-=-=-=-

 leads to Calamari Coral City -- North Coral Avenue. Luke enters the gardens, arriving from Coral Avenue. Luke has arrived.

On the coral edge of one of the fountains in the garden, Jessalyn sits looking thoughtful and tired. One knee is drawn up to her chest, her arm wrapped about it, while the other dangles over the edge, her boot scraping the pearly gravel that is scattered across the ground.

Luke He is young, slightly built and mildly athletic. A tousled mop of sandy blonde hair, which frequently falls into his clear blue eyes, frames a well tanned face. Several discernable scars line his mouth and nose. He is dressed entirely in soft black fabric under a slate wool tunic of plain design. He wears a scuffed brown belt with a blaster holster and Lightsaber attached. His pants are tucked into gleaming calf high boots.

Jessalyn The deepset eyes of this young human woman are rainforest green, and are lit from within with humor and compassion whenever she offers her dazzling smile. Shining dark red hair falls in unruly silken waves around her shoulders, framing her features with their wide cheekbones and smooth, pale skin not as fragile as most redheads'. She is wearing a dark green, long-sleeved shirt beneath a velvet black tunic that is belted at her narrow waist. The full sleeves are cinched above her pale, slender wrists. A blaster is holstered to one thigh, and your eyes are drawn to her best feature, upon which she wears a pair of tight, dark green pants tucked into knee-high black leather boots, both complementing the best pair of legs in ten parsecs. Standing in dark contrast to the shimmering sand laying about, Luke steps around an intricately colored swath of coral and pauses. A look playing on his features, of a smile perhaps, but laced with bittersweet. He looks over his shoulder thoughtfully the way he had come as if he will turn around. He doesn't however, and approaches Jess, "There you are." he says softly at a distance. His boots churning up miniscule pebbles with each step. Approaching now, he sits next to you gazing out upon the reef.

You sense Luke looking at you.

Jessalyn glances up at you, head tilted, and shrugs. "I wasn't hiding," she says mildly, and her arm tightens around her knee. Her eyes are shadowed green, like a forest needing sunlight, and her smile is faint though sincere as she forces it onto her face.

Luke snatches up a handful of the brightly colored stones, letting a portion of them fall through his fingers into the other hand. "I wanted to talk to you about.. things." his gaze catching yours briefly before he continues in a conversational tone. "I'll be leaving soon. I don't know where, but I've got to find out what happened to Han." he purses a lip while peering at a crimson stone, "How are you after.. what happened?" his voice soft and oddly labored.

Jessalyn narrows her eyes slightly, as if deep in thought. "I'll be leaving soon, too," she says slowly, then blinks and looks at you harder. "After what happened?" she asks, perplexed.

Luke shifts to face you and pauses collecting his thoughts. He bowls past the question by asking another distant one, "Jess, do you remember on the Alderaan when I attempted to help you with the dream?" his eyes flickering bluely while a breeze wafts through rustling the clothing of the two.

Jessalyn shivers slightly as the breeze passes by, and nods her head slowly, squinting as her hair is blown into her eyes. "I remember," she says quietly, still sounding confused. "Is that what you meant? That was... so long ago." Her lips quiver as they turn down into a frown, and she looks suddenly uncomfortable.

Luke glances off toward the reef in the distance and lets the rest of the pebbles slip through a gloved hand. He holds onto a medium sized one, blue and nearly crystalline in nature. He turns it over in his fingers. "I didn't want to say anything.." he says as if in a fog, "..I even tried to tell myself otherwise.." he holds the stone up, letting it reflect the light and adding, "I.. I saw something in you then.. but I also felt.." he blinks as if shaking off a memory while letting out a breath.

Jessalyn's confused expression only deepens, and her spine goes rigid as she swallows hard. "Luke... what are you talking about? You're not making any sense," she chides in a soft voice, barely able to hide the fretfulness behind it.

Luke turns and reaches for your hand, unconsciously pressing the stone into your palm while cradling your hand with his, "Jess.." he says intently. "The Force is with you."

Jessalyn stares down as you take her hand, brows knitting together. When she finally looks up -- though not at you -- she is frowning, as if the words she just heard were out of context. "The Force has been with us," she says solemnly, thinking over all the recently past events. But as she looks back into your eyes, her own widen as she begins to understand that wasn't what you meant.

Luke nods slowly as if waiting for this to sink in. "I didn't want to believe it Jess.. because I don't know if I'm ready to teach you.." he sighs audibly, sadly, his voice trailing off to a mere whisper, "My Father was turned to the Dark side because his teacher was unprepared." he shakes his head, "I didn't want that to happen to you.."

Jessalyn continues to stare at you as she listens, her mouth opening in stunned silence, her tired eyes widening even more. When your words fade, she blinks her eyes, then suddenly jerks her hand away. "Teach me?" she says incredulously, her throat tightening. "Luke, you -are- wrong, you have to be!" Knees wobbly, she stands up from the fountain and paces away from you, back turned. "What you're saying can't be true!" she insists in a pleading voice.

Luke stands calmly, "It is true.." he half breathes out, "I've felt the Force in you."

Jessalyn's head shakes vigorously, but she still doesn't face you. "No," she moans. "Alora lied to me, I knew it then. I didn't want it to be true, and it's not. Luke, please... "

Luke places both hands on your shoulders from behind. His voice gentle as the breeze blowing through the reef, "It is true." he says again, "And after I recognized my own fear in teaching you about the Force, I realized there is no one else. Jess.." he pulls you around to face him, "I've been searching so long.." his expression does not seem saddened now, but slowly filling with joy. His features lit from within. Jessalyn is reluctant to face you, her shoulders shaking as you hold them. Her head bent, she mumbles, "You -- you can't be serious. It's not possible. Even if I have what -- what you're saying, I can't..." Her eyes lift, round and green beneath the screen of her lashes, like huge watery jewels, "-I- can't be a -- a Jedi?" The last word is rushed and barely audible as she stares at you in disblief.

"You will be." Luke answers confidently, "But you aren't yet. Jess you have a potential. It's raw and untamed. It's the reason I was so upset that Alora had spoken with you." he sighs, "..and I noticed your anger afterward. She could have made you more angry. She could have brought that out in you..  Jess you have to know how dangerous it is."

Jessalyn's eyes flash and she takes a step back from you. "Are you listening to yourself? Have you even thought about what -I- want?" Her throat works convulsively as she struggles to control her composure. "Luke, you're talking about changing my entire -life-!"

Luke lets his hands slip off your shoulders as you step back, "Regardless of whether you want it or not. You have it. And sooner or later it will change your life, either for the best or the worst. It's inevitable. Jess,  with proper training you can learn to control it." his words emotive and optimistic, he continues, "..to do good with it."

Jessalyn's hands clench at her sides. Her voice has lost its fire as she bends her head, and asks forlonly, "Then... you're telling me that... I don't have a choice?"

"You have a choice in -what- you will do with it." Luke answers glumly. "Sooner or later, Alora or someone like her will find you and take away that choice." his eyes burning intensely, "Don't you understand?"

Jessalyn folds her arms tightly over her chest, and looks at you intently. Taking a deep, steadying breath, she whispers, "So...you want to teach me ...what you know." Raking a hand back through her hair distractedly, she goes on, "I'll be honest with you, Luke. I trust you, and I respect you more than anyone else I've ever known. But what you're asking might be too  difficult for me. I've been looking forward to getting away from here and  forgetting that I ever met you at all." Jessalyn looks at you a bit fearfully as she waits for your reaction.

Luke leans against the reef on one hand. He nods resignedly, "I understand, and I'm sorry."

Jessalyn frowns down at her boots, at a loss. "It's not your fault," she mumbles.

"It is my fault, but I can't help that now." Luke answers.

Jessalyn sighs wearily and goes back next to the fountain, resting half her weight upon the ledge. She runs a hand nervously along her thigh, staring down into the swirling patterns of water over the pool's bottom. "What do you want me to do?" she says quietly, her voice resigned. Luke also moves back over to the fountain and sits down on its edge, "You mentioned you were leaving. Where are you going?"

Jessalyn tilts her head, frowning slightly. "Yavin. They're building the new base for the Support Corps there... and I..." She dips a fingertip into the water, her frown deepening as she notices the trembling of her hands. "I was looking forward to going home again..."

Luke nods, "I know this is a lot to comprehend at once Jess. You don't have to do anything right now." he watches you carefully for half a second before continuing, "I'll meet you on Yavin. If you have some time we can talk ok?"

Jessalyn wipes her hand on her knee, then clasps her hands tightly together. Looking much younger than her years, she gazes at you with a hint of sadness in her eyes. "All right," she says, straightening her shoulders and trying to show a bravery she doesn't really feel

Luke simply looks at you. His features placid yet containing just under the surface, his own concerns. He touches your arm, speaking soothingly, "You can do it. I'll show you how." yet there is a glimmer there as he says it, as if he isn't quite sure he can show you. It fades quickly.

Jessalyn reaches up impulsively for your hand as you touch her arm. "Do you really think I can?" she asks, obviously begging for honesty.

Luke hesitates a fraction of a moment, yet he nods. "You can if you let go of your anger and hatred. They belong to the Dark Side. I can't emphasize  that enough Jess. This power you have can do mysterious and wonderful  things, but if you allow yourself to be overcome by fear, you'll only slip  down the wrong path.." his voice fading, "..the path Alora chose." he straightens thoughtfully, "If you feel that you can use it to become  powerful.." he shakes his head, his voice becoming clear, "The way of the Jedi is the way of peace. Do you understand that?"

Jessalyn grips your hand hard, biting her lip as she takes in your words. She lets them sink in, silent for several long minutes, then meets your blue gaze seriously. "I don't want to be like her. I knew from the moment I first met her that she wasn't like you, Luke. And you you're... well, to me, there's no one better to emulate than you. I hope.. you know that I believe  in you, and in the Jedi ... I would never want to disappoint you."

Luke smiles warmly, "You'll do fine." he answers. "I just hope you'll understand that I've never done this before."

Jessalyn smiles wanly in response. "Like I have?" She sinks back, the enormity of it all hitting her in the chest, and she suddenly feels light- headed.

Luke nearly chuckles, grabbing your arm and mirroring something said to him long ago, "You've taken your first step into a larger world." he grins openly, "Relax."

Jessalyn breathes deeply, trying to steady herself, and gives a brief nod of her dark red head. "Relax. Right." A tentative smile tugs at her lips. "Luke? I don't feel any differently than I did before," she chuckles. "Are you sure about me?"

Luke nods, peering at you intently, "I'm sure. You've always had it. You just didn't know it. I've seen you toward people. I saw how you reacted the day  Jenny Calhoun died. I saw how you speak with Shenner, understanding  what she's saying before she says it.. I've felt the Force around you. You  just need to learn how to feel it within yourself."

Jessalyn looks away, blinking quickly, and gazes back at you with mouth agape. "Really? I --" She glances down shyly. "I hope you'll show me how. And I'm glad it was you.. and not some stranger, who told me."

"I'll tell you everything I know Jess. I'll meet you on Yavin and steal you away from your work for awhile." Luke says smiling. Jessalyn smiles back at you, hesitantly at first, and then beaming. "All right," she whispers. "When -- when are you leaving?" Luke inhales a breath thoughtfully, holding his hands in his lap, "I wanted to get Paul underway to Mandalore, and do some checking on Han's  whereabouts. I dunno.. couple of days maybe?" he says.

Jessalyn chews on her bottom lip. "I guess I'll be leaving as soon as my suspension is over," she chuckles.

Luke half scowls, "They aren't making you stay here are they?" Jessalyn replies, "No, they just.. relieved me of duty for a week." She smiles ruefully. "It wasn't just you who was angry with me for going to Palanhi."

Luke smiles at that, "It'll blow over." he notes casually.

Jessalyn raises a brow at that, but shrugs it off. "I hope so. General Calhoun didn't seem as upset about it as I was afraid he would be. And the princess was around to defend me." She laughs. "And then he informed me of my new position." Shaking her head, she laughs harder, "Imagine -- I was shocked just to learn they'd made me a commanding officer -- and  now -this!-"

Luke chuckles, "And that's why you're going to Yavin? To get your group together?"

Jessalyn nods, her eyes bright. "Yes, I'm a little overwhelmed by it. I'm not sure how I get myself into these things!" She slaps her hand down on her thigh, then laughs nervously.

Luke smiles off into the distance, "I know what you mean."