#a. leks: i have never felt anything ever in my entire life | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

thai-with-booty · 4 years ago

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The mall Part III

I wake up in the same bed alone. I sit up, realising that I am now free to move. Even though I am naked, I don't feel ashamed about it. I have never felt so calm and relaxed. I stand on shaky legs and look around. Opening the door, I hear music and familiar voices down the hall. I follow the sound and enter the room. The guys smile at me and whistle as I start to move to the rhythm of the music, feeling my bare breasts bounce and their eyes all over me. They wave for me to come closer, and as I dance toward them I feel so free, so liberated, so sexually awake. I get to them, and with a little smile on my face, I start to bend down, unzipping David's zipper, letting his cock loose. I get on my knees, with my ass sticking out and start to lick his cock. Soon I have the entire thing inside of my mouth, and I feel a cock enter my pussy. Not even looking back, I start to get into a rhythm with the music and the fucking. Soon I feel the cock pull out of my pussy, and I look over to see Jason lying on the couch, his long hard cock pointing straight up. I go over to him, sit over his cock, and slowly let myself down, feeling his entire shaft enter me. I feel Jason pull my head toward his, and our mouths meet in a wet eager kiss. Then I feel something start to lubricate my asshole, and a finger starts to enter it. Feeling this, I stop pumping the cock that is filling my wet pussy, but feeling this finger probing an area of me that had never been touched and wanting it to fill me, but feeling afraid of the pain, I tell him to stop, but my body defies my wishes and continues to push against the finger. Soon it is completely inside of me, then in an instant I hear it pop out. Soon I feel something wider and bigger press against it. Knowing what was coming next didn't prepare me for the rush of pain as the head of a cock filled my ass, but since the cock was entering me slowly, soon the pain was not replaced, but overwhelmed by the urge to have it all inside of me. Slowly I could feel it fill my hole. Feeling the two cocks inside of me start to move is a feeling that I cannot describe. I can feel them almost rubbing against one another, soon they start pumping me faster and faster, I open my eyes and I see Paul in front of me, masturbating, I smile at him and lick my lips and as he moves closer. I am in ecstasy as I put my lips around his cock. At first there is an awkward moment of un-coordination, but we quickly develop a rhythm and I am completely lost in my lust as these three cocks fill all three of my holes. I feel myself almost immediately start to orgasm, but not wanting this feeling to end, I keep my composure and I can feel many almost mini-orgasms start to come over me in waves. Lost in all of the moaning, I can instinctively feel that all three are about to cum almost at the same time. First Jason starts to cum inside of my pussy. Feeling his cum spurt inside of me brings me completely over the edge. Soon I feel Paul start to unload inside of my mouth. I hungrily try to swallow it all but again I feel it start to drip all over me. At the same time I feel David let loose his orgasm inside of my asshole. The three of them filling me with their hot cum brings on an orgasm like the one I had before, and as I hear myself moan and scream on the verge of another mind-blowing orgasm, I remember that the French call an orgasm "the little death" and I black out again. I wake up to an empty house, with my clothes laid out beside me with a note... "Thank you, Lek. I am sorry that I couldn't be with you right now but I would love to keep in touch (and more than touch) with you. Feel free to help yourself to the shower, the sauna, whatever. Here are the keys to my car in the garage, feel free to use it but just return it to me in the next couple of days. Looking forward to seeing you again. David" I reflect for a while on what has happened to me today, and I realise that my life has just changed. A side of me has been awakened and I will never be able to ignore it anymore. Suddenly I realise that my relationship with my husband has changed, but I know (hope) that he will understand. But then again, maybe not. After all, it's not every man that has to put up with a wife changing from a boring housewife to a nymphomaniac with a burning need for sex. But then again, it was his idea... I find the bathroom and look at myself in the mirror. I no longer see a bored housewife. I see an awakened sexual animal. I hop in the shower and bring myself to another orgasm with the hand-held shower massage. Before today, I always felt a tinge of embarrassment and guilt whenever I masturbated, but not anymore. I walk back to the bedroom and lie on the bed listening to the radio as I put on my clothes. I hear the time and I realise that I have been in this house for six hours. I find the nearest telephone and I frantically call my house. My husband calmly answers the phone and asks me how I am doing. I answer seductively it was even better than I ever imagined, beyond even his wildest dreams. He then reminds me that I am still his for the day, but asks me if I have anything that I would like to do. I remember the woman that I met at the mall, and I slyly tell him about my encounter with her. He laughs and tells me that I would never do anything like that. I tell him that I will, but he still doesn't believe me. We come to an agreement on another bet. Same as this one, the loser is the others for a day. I quickly agree and tell him I will be home soon, but not too soon. I open my purse and pull the business card out. I dial her home phone and when I hear her answer, I almost hang up, but I quickly introduce myself, and she laughs, saying that she was waiting for me to call. She gives me her address and soon I am out the door on the way to her place. In the garage I realize that the car that is left for me to borrow is the same black convertible that I arrived in. I leave the house, leaving my blouse open at the waist, revelling in the feeling of the wind blowing across my naked breasts, making my nipples hard. A couple of guys in trucks honk at me but I barely bother to acknowledge their stares. Soon I find myself at the address that she gave me, and as get out of the car I suddenly hear a voice inside of my head telling me that this is all wrong and I should just go home. I quickly put that thought out of my mind as I reach her door and ring the bell. She opens the door, and I see that she is dressed in tiny denim shorts and an orange bikini top. I enter her house and close the door behind me. The next thing that I know is that I have grabbed her and started to kiss her lips. She kisses me back, softly yet hungrily, like I have never been kissed before, then breaks my kiss. I try to pull her back to me but she is stronger than I am, and laughs at me saying that she knew I would come to her. I try to get closer to her again, wanting to feel her touch, her lips pressed against mine, but she again tells me to do as I say. I try to force the issue again and soon I find myself laying on her floor, forcefully pushed back by her. She is sitting on top of me not laughing at me, but smiling at me. She pulls her bikini top up and looks at me saying, "Is this what you want? She leans down and lets her nipple linger near my lips, as I start to lick it she pulls it away from me. I can see her nipple glistening with my saliva as she looks down at me, smiles and removes the bikini top, then lets her breast come to my mouth, moaning in pleasure as I suckle on it. She pulls it away again and it is replaced by her lips. We softly kiss and my aggressiveness is soon overcome by her firm but gentle kiss. I soon realise that this will be very different from the animal sex that I had with David, Jason and Paul. She moves so that we are side to side. I feel her hands start to gently caress my skin, making tiny circles on my stomach, slowly moving up and circling each breast, making more tiny circles around my nipples. The whole time she is doing this we are still kissing, probing each other's mouth with our tongues. I find my hands gently massaging her soft skin, moving down past her taut stomach and past her cutoffs, to the bare skin of her thighs. As animalistic as I felt before, I feel the calmness of sex this time, and I gently massage her spreading thighs. My fingers find their way to the buttons of her shorts, and I unbutton them one by one, never removing my lips from hers. Too soon she breaks our kiss and she stands and motions for me to follow her. I do and follow her to her bedroom. She removes the rest of her clothes and removes what little clothes that I still have on. She softly hugs me and pulls me to her mouth for another kiss, this one even softer and gentler than the one before. I start to feel the hunger inside of me and I start to kiss her harder, but she pulls back, telling me to relax and to let her teach me how different it is with another woman. She lays me back on the bed, and lays on top of me, first kissing me again on my lips, but then slowly working down and starting to nibble on my ears and neck. I can feel the goose bumps all over my body as this familiar yet different sensation overcomes me. After what feels like forever she moves her lips to my breasts, and starts to playfully lick them and suck on them gently. I have always had sensitive nipples but for the first time I actually start to orgasm from her touch on my nipples. This orgasm is so different from what I have been feeling all day, so calm, so relaxed, yet still intense. She hears me moan and gently continues to massage and suckle on my breasts. The orgasm ends as gently as it came, and I feel her mouth start to move down my body again. Slowly she kisses my stomach, working her way down to my sweet wet pussy. She soon gets there and starts to kiss and lick me in a manner that I had never imagined before. I feel another orgasm coming, and she slowly inserts her finger inside of me, not forcefully like others have done to me before, but softly, rapidly putting a part of it in and pulling it out. Never inserting it all the way but enough that I can feel it go in and out. I am soon lost in ecstasy again and I can hear myself moan as another orgasm rips my body. I open my eyes and I see her standing, but then she sits on top of me, straddling my stomach. I close my eyes as she starts to massage my upper body, starting at my chest but working her way to my shoulders, moving her body up at the same time. I can feel the wetness of her as her pussy rubs against my body. I open my eyes and I see her vagina in front of my face. As it gets close enough to me, I start to lick her, trying to duplicate what she did to me. Even though I have less experience, I must be doing it right because I can hear her start to moan as she moves her body against my tongue and mouth. Soon she is screaming from an orgasm taking over her body. She collapses next to me and she hugs me as I cuddle against her and I find myself drifting off to sleep. When I awake, I feel her body against mine. I slowly get up trying not to wake her, but she feels me stirring and as she awakens, she smiles at me and beckons me to kiss her. As I do, I tell her that I have to go. She smiles again at me and tells me that she understands. I quickly find my clothes and then I realise that I need something to prove to my husband that I won the bet. I notice a Polaroid camera sitting on her dresser, and I smile at her and ask her to pose for me. I quickly take the snapshot of her nude body. She stands and kisses me, opening my blouse and starts to caress my breasts and kisses me for the last time as she shows me to the door. On the way home I reflect on the day. I vow never to let the sexual animal inside of me remain caged. I just hope that my husband will understand. After all, it is his fault that I have undergone this sexual awakening. And since I won the bet, I hope that he can handle the plans that I have for him. And I don't plan on him doing household chores anymore!

#the mall #story

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shawtygonemad · 4 years ago

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What Is This Feeling: Chapter 7

Fem!9th Doctor x Male!Rose Tyler

WITF Masterlist

Through time and space once more, our extraordinary duo was off to have another adventure. The TARDIS sped through the time vortex.

"Where are we going?" Ross asked.

"The planet Panera. They have fantastic bread," the Doctor grinned at her companion.

The TARDIS suddenly switched course and jolted in the opposite direction. The Doctor examined the screen and tried to figure out what was going on. The ship finally materialized. The Doctor and Ross stepped out. It was a dimly lit area with carpeting and display cases. It looked like a museum.

"So, what is it? What's wrong," Ross instantly began to ask.

"Don't know. Some kind of signal drawing the TARDIS off course," the Doctor spoke as she looked around.

"Where are we?"

"Earth. Utah, North America. About half a mile underground," the Time Lord deduced.

"And when are we?"

"2012," she informed her friend as she began to inspect a case.

"God, that's so close. So I should be 26."

The Doctor found the light switch and flipped it on. The room and cases suddenly lit up.

"Blimey. It's a great big museum."

"An alien museum," she looked at the exhibits as she walked forward. "Someone's got a hobby." She shook her head.

"They must have spent a fortune on this. Chunks of meteorites, moon dust. That's the milometer from Roswell spaceship." She furrowed her eyebrows, confused.

"That's a bit of Slitheen!" Ross pointed to a Slitheen arm in one of the glass cases. "That's a Slitheen's arm. It's been stuffed."

The Doctor stopped in front of one of the cases. "Oh, look at you."

Ross walked behind the Doctor and looked over her shoulder. "What is it?"

'Delete…' she heard an echo in her mind.

"An old friend of mine. Well, enemy. Stuff of nightmares reduced to an exhibit. I'm getting old." She internally groaned.

"Is that where the signal's coming from," Ross asked.

"No, it's stone dead. The signal's alive, calling out for help."

The Doctor reached out her fingers, and lightly brushed the glass. Alarms suddenly blared from all around. The pair slightly jumped at the sudden noise. The Time Lord mentally kicked herself. She should have been more careful. Before they could make it to the TARDIS they were cut off and surrounded by guards. The guards were armed and aiming at them.

"If someone's collecting aliens, that makes you exhibit A," Ross nervously joked.

The two of them were escorted by the armed guards up many levels, and throughout the complex. The journey was mostly silent. Ross stayed close by her side, however. Finally they were led into their destination. An office full of over confident Americans.

The man sitting at the desk seemed to be the one behind the complex. He was being showed their recent purchase. It was a musical instrument. They did not know it, and looked completely daft whilst holding it.

"You really wouldn't hold it like that," she almost laughed at how stupid he looked.

"Shut it," she was yelled at.

"Really though, it's wrong," she insisted.

"Is it dangerous?" A girl around Ross's age asked.

"No, it just looks silly," the Doctor smirked.

She reached for the item. Firing bolts clicked all around her. She stopped. The man behind the desk curiously looked at her, and handed over the curved palm sized object.

"You just need to be-"she stroked the instrument softly, and out rang a beautiful sound. "Delicate." To prove her point, she played several different notes.

"It's a musical instrument," the man said, fascinated.

"And it's a long way from home," the Doctor commented.

"Here, let me," the man took the instrument from her hands.

She raised her eyebrows. That was rude. The man proceeded to touch it harder, causing no noise to come out.

"I did say delicate. It reacts to the smallest fingerprint. It needs precision," she once again informed him.

Once he finally got the hang of it and produced music, she smiled.

"Very good. Quite the expert," she complimented.

"As are you," he said before tossing the object on the floor.

The Doctor's jaw dropped. That was almost two hundred years old! It was used to entertain kings and queens, and he just threw it away?! Who is this man?!

"Who are you, exactly?"

"I'm the Doctor. And you are?"

"Like you don't know. We're hidden away with the most valuable collection of extra-terrestrial artifacts in the world, and you just stumbled in by mistake?"

The Doctor laughed. "Pretty much sums me up, yeah."

The man slowly walked around his desk, and got closer to the Doctor.

"The question is, how did you get in? Fifty three floors down, with your cat burglar accomplice. You're quite an artifact yourself, being rather pretty."

"The cat burglar accomplice is going to smack you if you don't give the 'artifact' personal space," Ross shot off angrily. It shocked the Doctor a bit. It was the first time he was ever verbally protective of her.

"Oh, he's English too! Hey, little lady Fauntleroy. Got you a boyfriend."

"This is Mister Henry Van Statten," the girl introduced. She was the only English person, besides Ross, at the complex.

"Who is he at home?" Ross snidely remarked.

"Mister Van Statten owns the internet," she added.

"Don't be stupid. No one owns the internet," he jabbed again.

"And let's just keep letting the world think that, right kids," Van Statten remarked, smug.

"So you're just an expert in everything except the things in your museum. Anything you don't understand, you lock it up."

"And you claim greater knowledge?" Van Statten challenged.

"I don't need to make claims. I know how good I am," she shot back.

"And yet, I captured you. Right next to the cage. What were you doing down there?" He asked.

The Doctor placed her hands on her hips. "You tell me," she sassed.

"The cage contains my one living specimen."

"And what's that?"

"Like you don't know," Van Statten scoffed.

"Show me."

"You want to see it?" Van Statten once again challenged the Doctor.

"Blimey, do I need to separate you two?" Ross remarked, annoyed.

"Goddard, inform the cage we're heading down. You, English. Look after the boy. Go and canoodle or spoon or whatever it is you British do. And you, Doctor with no name, come and see my pet."

Van Statten stood in the elevator with a smirk on his face. The Doctor gave Ross a reassuring look before stepping on the lift next to the American. The ride down was quick and silent. Once they stepped out of the lift, the Doctor was led over toward a large metal door. Van Statten spoke as he unlocked and opened the large door.

"We've tried everything. The creature has shielded itself but there's a definite sign of life inside."

"Inside? Inside what?" The Doctor asked, curiously.

A man in an orange hazard suit walked over to Van Statten.

"Welcome back, Sir. I've had to take the power down. The Metaltron is resting."

"Metaltron?"

'What kind of dumb name is that?' She thought.

"I thought of it myself," Van Statten stated proudly.

'Of course.'

"Although I'd much to prefer to find out its real name."

"Here, you'd better put these on," the man in the hazard offered her rubber gloves. "The last guy that touched it burst into flames."

"I won't touch it then," she said like it was most obvious.

"Go on, Doctor. Impress me," Van Statten grinned at her.

The Doctor narrowed her eyes at him before strutting past, into the cage. It was very dark as she looked around. She jumped slightly as the door slammed shut behind her.

The Time Lord continued to investigate. She found a small table with drills, and other torture tools. Her heart instantly went out to the creature. She turned to where she assumed the 'Metaltron' was. She couldn't make it out. The room was too dark.

"Look, I'm sorry about this. Mister Van Statten might think he's clever, but never mind him. I've come to help. I'm the Doctor."

A few seconds of silence passed before a blue light was seen. When the Metaltron spoke, two white lights flashed with its words.

"Doc-tor?"

The Doctor's eyes widened, and her hearts stopped. No! This can't happen. It's-

"Impossible," she managed to breathe out.

"The Doc-tor?" The Metaltron spoke with more confidence this time.

The lights came up to reveal a Dalek. The Doctor's worst enemy. And it was chained to the floor. This didn't stop the Doctor from crying out in fear.

"Ex-ter-min-ate! Ex-ter-min-ate!"

The Time Lord flung herself onto the door and started to pound her fists.

"Let me out," she practically screamed.

"Ex-ter-min-ate!"

The door wouldn't open. The Doctor took a step back and just stared at the monstrosity. Her entire body was quivering. Her hearts were pounding hard into her chest.

"You are an en-e-my of the Da-leks! You must be des-troyed!"

The Doctor closed her eyes and awaited death. This was it. This was how she would finally die after nine hundred years. Maybe it was her time. Suddenly she accepted her fate. She never realized until now that she was ready to go.

After a few seconds without pain, she opened her eyes. She was alive! Yet a small part inside of her was disappointed. That part was overshadowed by the sickening joy she suddenly felt over her enemy.

"It's not working." She started to laugh like she's gone mad. "Fantastic! Oh, Fantastic! Powerless! Look at you. The great space dustbin. How does it feel?"

The Dalek tried to roll backwards, but was stopped by the chains.

"Keep back!" It demanded.

"What for?" She launched herself forward and became face to eyestock with the Dalek. "What're you going to do to me?" She challenged.

The Doctor, bottled with rage, began to circle the creature. Like a lion hunting its prey. She wanted to intimidate it.

"If you can't kill, then what are you good for, Dalek? What's the point of you? You're nothing!"

The Gallifreyan finally stopped back in front of the Dalek.

"What the hell are you here for?"

"I am a-wait-ing or-ders!" It responded to her.

"What does that mean?"

"I am a sold-ier. I was bred to rec-ieve or-ders."

"Well you're never going to get any. Your race is dead!" She yelled at it. "You all burnt, all of you. Ten million ships on fire. The entire race wiped out in one second."

"You lie!"

"I watched it happen. I made it happen," she spoke maliciously.

"You des-troyed us?" It asked, almost sounding heartbroken.

The alien stopped and calmed down a bit. She turned away from the Dalek in guilt. Their race wasn't the only one she destroyed that day.

"I had no choice," she responded quietly.

"And what of the Ti-me Lo-rds?"

"Dead." She managed to choke out. "They burned with you. The end of the last great Time War. Everyone lost."

"And the coward survived."

This fueled her rage once more. However, she managed to keep it under control.

"Oh, and I caught your little signal. Help me. Poor little thing. But there's no one else coming 'cause there's no one else left."

"I am a-lone in the un-i-verse," it almost sounded defeated.

"Yep."

"So are you. We are the same."

The Doctor spun around, no longer able to hold her anger.

"We're not the same! I'm not-"she paused as a cruel thought crossed her mind. "No, wait. Maybe we are. You're right. Yeah, okay. You've got a point. 'Cause I know what to do. I know what should happen. I know what you deserve." She grinned sickeningly.

"Exterminate."

With that the Doctor pulled a lever on a nearby console. The Dalek lit up with electricity. It began to scream, and she just watched.

"Have pity!" It cried out.

"Why should I? You never did." She pulled another lever, and increased the electricity.

"Help me!"

Suddenly the door opened and guards flooded in. She launched herself towards the last lever. No! This was her only chance to kill it! She was suddenly yanked away from the panel and was practically carried out of the cage.

"No! You've got to destroy it!" She yelled.

The Doctor ripped herself away from the guards once outside the cage. She frowned deeply as she waited for Van Statten to leave the cage. She was very cross with the American man. Once he left the cage they were guided towards the lift.

"The metal's just an armor. The real Dalek creature's inside," she explained to Van Statten.

"What's it look like?" he asked.

"A nightmare. It's a mutation. The Dalek race was genetically engineered. Every single emotion was removed except hate," she tried to explain to them. These stupid little apes weren't getting the big picture!

"Genetically engineered," he spoke as if it were Christmas. "By whom?"

"By a genius, Van Statten," she was starting to get stressed out. "By a man who was king of his own little world. You'd like him."

Van Statten's assistant Goddard decided to butt herself in.

"It's been on Earth for over fifty years. Sold at private auction, moving from one collection to another. Why would it be a threat now?" she asked.

"Because I'm here." How many times does she have to explain it? "How did it get to Earth? Does anyone know?"

"The records say it came from the sky like a meteorite. It fell on Earth on the Ascension Islands. Burnt in its crater for three days before anyone could get near it and all that time it was screaming. It must have gone insane," Goddard spoke in a superior tone.

The Doctor stood for a moment and thought. "It must of fallen through time. The only survivor."

"You talked about war," the human female asked.

"The Time War. The final battle between my people and the Dalek race."

"But you survived, too," Van Statten said with a devilish smile on his face.

"Not by choice," The Doctor added grimly.

"This means the Dalek isn't the only alien on Earth. Doctor, there's you. The only one of your kind in existence."

Just as the doors opened, the Doctor was once again grabbed. She struggled against their grip as they led her into her own cage.

"Any type of exposed metal is going to affect the laser scanner," Van Statten smiled.

The Doctor ended up having to shed her boots, jacket, and top. She was able to keep her bra on because Van Statten claimed he was a 'gentleman'. So now that the Doctor was stripped, she got chained spread eagle in front of the scanner.

"Now, smile!" Van Statten said, cheerfully.

The Doctor bit her lip as a painful shock ran through her body from the laser.

"Two hearts! Binary Vascular System. Oh, I am so going to patent this," Van Statten said.

The Doctor glared at the man. "So that's your secret. You don't just collect this stuff, you scavenge it."

She shook her head in anger as Van Statten went on to say how he cured the common cold and was going to sell cures for every disease. The Doctor was getting frustrated.

"Do you know what a Dalek is, Van Statten? A Dalek is honest. That creature in your dungeon is better than you."

"In that case, I'll be true to myself and continue," Van Statten frowned.

"Listen to me! That thing downstairs is going to kill every last one of us!" She tried to get through to him.

"Nothing can escape the cage."

Van Statten turned the laser up a Koch and blasted the Doctor. She bit her lip harder as she tried to endure the pain. Once the laser stopped, she attempted to catch her breath and speak.

"But it's woken up! It knows I'm here. It's going to get out. Van Statten, I swear, no one in this base is safe. No one on this planet!"

He turned the laser to its highest setting. It once again blasted the Doctor. This time around wasn't for informational purposes. He just wanted to hear her scream. And he did.

#romance #adventure #doctor who fanfic #doctor x rose #the doctor x rose tyler #the doctor #doctor who fanfiction #doctor who #ninth doctor #bbc doctor who #doctor who imagine #fem!9th doctor x male!rose tyler #fem!9th doctor #male!rose tyler #9th doctor x rose #rose tyler

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artyblogs · 6 years ago

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Across the Frozen Sea ch4

Star Wars the Clone Wars, Ahsoka/Barriss/Riyo

Across the Frozen Sea summary: Ahsoka, Barriss, and Riyo find themselves stranded in the Pantoran Taiga. They must get back to civilization, but the wilds are more dangerous than they realize. If the cold doesn’t get them, the locals will.

First Chapter : Previous Chapter : Next Chapter : Last Chapter

Chapter 4: Bravado Wharf

WARNING: If you are sensitive to the butchering of animals, then it might be best for you to skip this chapter.

Riyo wakes up to a blackened sky. She’s lying in the bed of the pickup speeder, pressed against Ahsoka’s side and covered in a shaggy, fur blanket. Pillowed under her head is a soft duffel bag.

“Hey,” Ahsoka says in a low voice. She turns her head to talk into Riyo’s ear and tells her what happened with the tea. While she talks, the roads become paved, so the ride is smoother. The road becomes lined with streetlights hanging from wires held aloft by wood posts.

Ahsoka’s voice is soothing and despite her initial panic at waking up in a strange place, Riyo finds herself relaxing against her. Her fingers catch in the folds of Ahsoka’s dress and she snuggles closer.

“Barriss hasn’t woken up yet, but I think she’s okay,” Ahsoka says. The both of them look at Barriss and find her almost covered entirely by the furs save for her pale green forehead.

Riyo slowly reaches across Ahsoka to Barriss, towards her face, and soon she feels a deep, gentle breath against her hand.

“Yes, she’s asleep.” Riyo withdraws her hand. Ahsoka’s arm snakes around her waist and pulls her in closer, and Riyo presses her cheek to Ahsoka’s lek. It’s toasty under the furs. Cozy. Ahsoka is a solid and safe presence next to her.

Riyo sighs. “Thank you for saving my life. Our lives. I should have taken my own advice and not drunk the tea.”

“You didn’t know Mrs. Kortzeer would be like that,” Ahsoka says.

The dark tree line whizzes past as they zoom down the highway. Now and then, they pass by a homestead, and the beams from the houselights cut across the pickup bed. It’s quiet and peaceful, but Riyo is too wired to sleep. Ahsoka might feel similar, for she’s still wide awake. Her hand lifts from Riyo’s waist and goes to her back, where her touch is light and fleeting, and Riyo realizes that she’s playing with her hair. Riyo turns her face in to Ahsoka’s lek to hide her smile.

“Sorry, I should have asked. Should I stop?” Ahsoka asks. Her face is so very close to hers. If Riyo turned her head….

If she turned, what might happen?

A pit of longing opens up in Riyo’s chest.

“No.” Riyo doesn’t know if Ahsoka’s doing this on purpose, but at any rate, she probably should have figured before now that Ahsoka would be fascinated by hair. Ahsoka grins and continues, testing the weight, how it falls. It’s oddly comforting.

Ahsoka has always been rather uncharacteristically free with physical contact for a Jedi. She holds Riyo’s hand, or touches her arm or her shoulder. She’d stand close and even place a hand on the small of Riyo’s back to usher her through places. And while it’s easy for Riyo to explain it away as platonic, sometimes she’ll catch Ahsoka’s eye and find a tenderness in her gaze that can’t be dismissed so easily.

To read too much into it would be too dangerous, however. That path would only lead to pain. Best not to dwell on it.

“Ahsoka?”

“Yeah?”

“When we woke up in the forest, before we got away from our abductors, Barriss suggested that she sacrifice herself to give us a chance to escape.”

Ahsoka’s hand stills, her fingers curled around a lock of Riyo’s hair. “Oh? She did that?”

“You don’t sound as surprised as I thought you’d be.”

“She’s done that before. I don’t know why she defaults to that when things go bad.”

“She defaults to sacrificing herself,” Riyo repeats, astonished. Never mind going gray, these Jedi are going to steal years off her life. She might as well save time and walk into the ocean right now, or go back to Reindeer Ridge. One of her fellow senators, Padmé Amidala of Naboo, is notorious for being close friends with two Jedi. Is this how she feels all the time? Is this what it’s like? How does she do it? How? How?

Perhaps they can convince Barriss to stop doing that.

Ahsoka snorts. “I don’t think it’s something we can change about Barriss.”

“You having fun reading my mind, Master Jedi?”

Ahsoka has the impudence to chuckle. “I don’t have to read your mind, Riyo. Your anger radiates through the Force.”

“Eish!” Riyo swears under her breath and playfully swats Ahsoka’s shoulder.

For those heading to the coast, Bravado is the last major city before one reaches the Pantoran taiga. It’s the last chance Snow Walkers would have before they head out into the wild, and there are many temporary Snow Walking tents set up along the street. At this time of night, there are only a few people out and about, all bundled up and hurrying home. The shop fronts are empty and dark.

“Everything’s closed,” Riyo says. She knocks on the cabin window and it slides open again. Sanele sticks her head out.

“What’s up, Senator?”

“Is there a comlink around here we could use? Or a holo-cafe?”

Sanele gives her an apologetic look. “No comlinks, and no holonet access. Not open to the public anyway. The college is the only place where all that tech is held.”

“What about a public archive? Archives have datapads.”

“The archive used to have datapads, but they kept getting stolen, so they stopped replacing them. They’re all gone now.”

“How about a space port?”

Sanele shakes her head. “No moon-wide or galactic port either. There’s a terminal with one ship, will that do?”

“You’re the Senator of Pantora. They’d let you get on that ship. They’ll let you use that comlink,” Ahsoka says.

Barriss stirs, and the hem of the blanket drops from her face. She blinks.

“I’m alive?” She asks, her voice thick with sleep.

“Of course,” Ahsoka says. “I’m not going to abandon you like that. I care about you too much.”

“Oh.” Barriss sounds genuinely surprised and touched, and Riyo is both appalled and somewhat offended. Did she really believe that they would just leave her? How could she expect that?

“Do you have your identichips?” Sanele asks.

“Unfortunately, no. Why do you ask?” Barriss asks.

Ahsoka explains their predicament.

“No one would believe Riyo is the senator without her identichip, and no one in their right mind wouldn’t ask to see it,” Barriss says. She stretches luxuriously, and Riyo’s eye traces the arc of her lithe body even through the furs. When Barriss settles back down, she pulls the furs back up over the bottom half of her face.

It’s the closest thing to relaxed that they’ve ever seen her.

“Good point,” Ahsoka says, strangely subdued. Too nonchalant. Riyo wonders if it might be because she felt Barriss stretch, instead of just watching her, and isn’t that a fascinating observation to make.

“At least Bravado is relatively close to Defiance,” Riyo says.

“Yeah, if by ‘close’ you mean like a two-hour drive by speeder. We could drive you to Defiance, right Vuyo?” Sanele asks.

“No, no, no. You need to enroll in classes,” Riyo says. “You need to make new lives here and you need to start tonight. It’ll be harder for you two to find a place to live if we travel with you.”

“But….”

“We will be fine. We’ll figure it out.” While the speeder is stopped at a traffic light, Riyo wriggles out from beneath the blanket and takes Sanele’s hand in hers. “Thank you for helping us. We’ll never forget it.”

Sanele and Vuyo share a look, then Sanele smiles at Riyo. “No, thank you. You’ve given us a second chance at this. We won’t let you down.”

Ahsoka and Barriss take their parka and cloak and hop out of the pickup bed. Riyo follows them, and she lets Ahsoka pick her up ‘round the waist and lowers her onto the ground. The three of them wave as the speeder takes off and turns the corner out of sight. Barriss pulls her winter cloak around her shoulders and does the buckles across her chest. Ahsoka shimmies her parka on and pulls her lekku though the hood.

“Their mom is a kriffing piece of work,” Ahsoka mutters.

“Yes, well, tell me about it.” Riyo walks across the street to reach the curb and continues down towards a kiosk. The map is made of faded, water-stained flimsi, and Riyo gets up on tip-toe to see better. They’re in the touristy part of town, in the middle of restaurants, tapcafes and many souvenir shops.

A young man walks down the street towards them, and he comes to a stop a few meters out. He’s nervous, and shifty.

Barriss steps closer to Riyo, her hands hidden in her cloak. “Can we help you?”

“Are you…my friends?” He asks, still nervous. He doesn’t make eye contact with any of them.

Ahsoka frowns. “What?”

“Oh, sorry. I thought I knew you.” He hurries around them and walks off, his hand hiding his face. The three of them watch him go until he disappears into the night.

“I don’t understand. Wouldn’t he know if he knew us? He wasn’t under the influence of anything,” Barriss says.

“He’s probably looking for his dealer. You wouldn’t happen to have death sticks on you, would you, Master Jedi? We could turn a quick credit.” Riyo turns back to the kiosk as Barriss’s jaw drops.

“Do we look like spice dealers?” She shrieks. Off in the distance, a couple akk dogs start barking. Riyo laughs, then gives Barriss an apologetic look. Before she can answer, a growling, gurgling noise comes from Ahsoka.

Ahsoka’s lekku stripes darken as she tugs her hood further down over her face. “I’m hungry.”

Barriss worries her lip. “No identichips, no credits, and no credit chips…What are we going to do? Where are we going to stay? What will we eat?”

Riyo hums and taps a fingertip against the northern part of the map, where the wharf is located. She turns this way and that, looking around to get her bearings, then beckons to the Jedi and leads the way. Eventually, the duracrete and asphalt give way to aged wood planks, but the shops are more or less the same, albeit with more of a seafood and shipyard focus. Even in the yellow light of the street lamps, they can make out the colorful monikers: Seals, whales, and sharks carved out of wood, huge, stylistic anchors jutting from the roofs, and more purple and yellow sigils painted across the walls and the thick posts. All of it eerie for being so silent and still. No one else is around. No sign of life at all. The three of them make their way through the narrow wharf and a few decks full of picnic benches until they reach the end of the dock, where they’re stopped by a guard.

The guard is dressed in a dark, fur cloak, and only has an oil lamp for company. He stands up from his folding chair and hefts a rifle against his shoulder, then raises a hand to stop them. His face is cast in shadow.

“Please stop and return to your homes. The piers are closed until further notice,” the guard says in Pantoran.

“Sir, all we want to do is fish,” Riyo says, but the guard raises his hand a little higher.

“These piers have been closed, and they will stay closed for the rest of the week according to Count Mafoo’s wishes. I’m sorry, Snow Walker, but you’ll have to scrounge for food elsewhere.” The guard gestures out, and they all look to find more piers, all laid out in a row. At the end of each of them is yet another guard with another oil lamp. The guard glances at Barriss and Ahsoka.

“Do you understand what I said?” He asks.

Barriss frowns. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Basic then. If you have a permit from Count Mafoo, I can let you fish and hunt.”

“A permit? Local hunters shouldn’t need permits to feed their families. Why has the Count closed the piers?” Riyo asks.

“The Count is gearing up for a feast, and has ordered his hunters to catch a hundred seals.”

“A hundred! Whatever for? Is it for the upcoming Blizzard God feast?”

“The Count doesn’t need a reason, nor does he need to justify himself to you, Snow Walker.”

“But….”

“The pier is closed! Please leave,” the guard says. Riyo finds herself being gently pulled away by Ahsoka and Barriss until they’re out of earshot of the guard.

“We can find something else, Riyo,” Barriss whispers.

“Yeah, I can hold out for a few more hours,” Ahsoka says.

Usually, that would be acceptable, but this is Pantora, and there are rules here. Riyo pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs. “Pantoran oceans are not a privilege, Master Jedi, they are a right. Many Pantorans depend on the sea for their livelihood.

“And yes, Ahsoka, you may be tough enough to go hungry for a while, but there are many in this town who cannot; the very young, the elderly, the pregnant, the sick. Bravado in general needs food now; the people here don’t deal with proper credits and don’t purchase most of their food, they hunt and fish. They will not last long without the piers.

“Also, I’m hungry too,” Riyo finishes lamely. She hopes it doesn’t sound as whiny as she suspects, but judging by how Barriss’ nose scrunches up, she must have sounded very whiny indeed. But she can’t help it! Ever since Ahsoka’s stomach growled, Riyo’s own stomach has started gnawing on itself. If this goes on for much longer, she’s going to find herself irritable as well.

Ahsoka chuckles. “Okay, come on.” She walks back to the guard, who grips his rifle.

“Listen, I said….”

“Yeah, I know what you said, but we don’t need a permit to hunt.” Ahsoka slowly waves her hand on front of the guard’s face. The guard pauses, his face growing slack.

“You…don’t need a permit to hunt,” the guard says in monotone.

“No one needs a permit to hunt. You’re here to keep the peace.”

“I’m here to keep the peace.”

“We can pass.”

“You may pass.” The guard takes a few steps to the side as if nothing is amiss. “Sorry about that, ladies.”

Ahsoka, Barriss, and Riyo all file past him, smiling. The guard smiles back, then sits back down in his folding chair.

“Follow me,” Riyo says, and she goes to a ladder bolted to the side of the dock. She makes her way down until she reaches the thick, slippery surface of the frozen sea. She holds her arms out for balance and slowly walks across the ice beyond the range of the light from the guard’s oil lamp, then keeps going. The lights give way to the aurora and to the stars. It’s chillier out here somehow. A few logs have been frozen in the ice, along with half of a rowboat.

“Is this safe?” Barriss asks from behind her.

“Yes.” Riyo points out to a few other hunters spread out across the ice. Each of them are bundled up and have their foldable stools and thermoses. Some sit near their ice holes with a club, and others have set up fishing poles. Riyo comes to a stop and crouches down, smoothing a hand over the ice.

“Here, there’s a breathing hole already. All we need to do is widen it.” Riyo steps aside as Ahsoka crouches down and brings both of her fists down in the spot she just indicated.

CRACK. The ice splinters into chunks. Barriss takes Riyo’s hand and pulls her further away. Ahsoka growls and raises her fists again.

CRACK. The ice breaks cleanly, and Ahsoka digs her fingers in and pries the chunks out, effortlessly tossing them away. She reaches seawater about a third of a meter down, and she keeps working until the hole is wide enough for something to poke its head through. She sits back on her heels, breathing lightly.

“Is that big enough?”

“Yes.” Riyo was going to use her knife, but this is much better. “By the Gods, Ahsoka, what do the Jedi feed you?”

Ahsoka grins up at them, her sharp teeth gleaming in the moonlight. “I wasn’t even using the Force either. It’s all muscle.”

“Well done. You’ve just expanded a seal breathing hole, so something should come up soon.”

“Got it.” Ahsoka draws her lightsaber hilt and squats down next to the jagged hole. She doesn’t move.

“Let’s go.” Barriss tugs on Riyo’s hand, and the both of them go to a log that’s been half frozen in the ice and sit down.

“We could keep her company,” Riyo says, but Barriss shakes her head.

“You won’t get much out of her which she’s in her hunting headspace. I remember on Geonosis: the Separatists kept shooting down our supply ships, so food was scarce. It got so dire that some of us hadn’t eaten in a couple days. Then one day, Ahsoka covered herself in red clay—clay that she dug up herself, from under the sand—and went by herself into the desert. She didn’t tell anyone where she went; we thought she had finally lost it. Master Skywalker and Master Kenobi were considering combing the planet for her.”

“What happened next?”

“After a few hours, Ahsoka coms us. She said that she needed Rex to take a squad of men to her current coordinates so that they could clean up her mess. When they got there, she was gone, but they found a freshly-killed camel. And then while they’re dressing the camel, Ahsoka commed again, with different coordinates. Master Skywalker went with another squad to that location and he found a dead antelope. This happened a few more times before everyone got…frustrated.

“While it’s a big help, everyone’s worried to death, so I decided to bring her back to camp. I noticed that these coordinates form a pattern, and I packed some supplies and go out to where I thought she’ll go next.”

“Did you find her?” Riyo asks. Barriss nods, then shrugs.

“She found me. She looked rather feral because by then she was covered in blood too. I tried to convince her to come back with me, but she told me that she was tracking something. But she might have felt guilty about being so much trouble, so she said that she would come back after one last kill. I waited in a cave while she stalked something.

“I waited for two hours before she brought back a goat.” Barriss pauses as she glances at Ahsoka, who still sits motionless next to the ice hole, as focused as a tooka on a songbird. “I have never seen her so patient, and I doubt we will ever see her as patient apart of a hunt.”

Barriss looks down at their clasped hands. She hasn’t pulled away after all this time, and while Riyo might like it for her own selfish reasons, she also guiltily wonders if Barriss dislikes it after all.

Maybe it’s because they were almost abducted again a few hours ago and they need some reassurance. Maybe it’s because of some other reason that Riyo doesn’t dare figure out to keep from getting her hopes up, but Barriss doesn’t let go. She doesn’t let go, and even though it’s inconvenient, she reaches across herself into her belt pouch and pulls out a heavy padlock.

“Did you take that from the garage?” Riyo asks.

“Sanele gave two to me after I asked to borrow one.” Barriss turns it over in her palm and falls silent for a moment.

CLICK. The lock pops open. Barriss smiles and pushes it closed again. She reaches into her pouch again and pulls out the second padlock.

“Are you practicing, Master Jedi?” Riyo asks, fascinated.

“I won’t be caught off guard again. Your risky plan paid off last time, but the idea of gambling with your life…it doesn’t sit well with me. You matter too much, Riyo. To the Galaxy, to Pantora. And Ahsoka too. She has a master to return to, and she has the command of her men. If we lost either of you, we’d be poorer for it.”

That’s the nicest thing Barriss has ever said to her, and it’s by far the nicest thing she’s heard her say about Ahsoka. Riyo find herself softening at that.

“Thank you, Barriss. I must admit that I feel very similar about you.”

Barriss straightens up and turns to Riyo. It’s difficult to make out her face in the darkness, but to Riyo’s dismay, she’s bewildered. “Me?”

“You! Is that so surprising to learn that I care about you? That the thought of you getting hurt upsets me?” Riyo asks. If Barriss thought that her death was so insignificant, then it explains quite a bit.

Barriss doesn’t answer.

Gods, Riyo hopes she isn’t going to wreck everything by saying this next bit. While she respects how Jedi shy away from any sign of sentimentality, she couldn’t quite forgive herself if she didn’t say anything now.

“I always feel so relieved when you and Ahsoka come back from your tours, or when Ahsoka sends me letters. When we all have dinner together at some hole-in-the-wall restaurant. If I had to mourn either of you, it would destroy me.”

Barriss covers her face with her hand and gives a breathy chuckle. She doesn’t laugh often, so Riyo’s not sure if it usually sound so strained, but she waits all the same.

“Then—then I suppose I’d better be more careful with myself, shouldn’t I?” Barriss asks.

“That would be great,” Riyo says. It comes out more sarcastic than she intended, and Barriss snorts and chuckles. This time, it’s light and infectious and, emboldened, Riyo joins her. Soon, the both of them are laughing together loud enough that some of the neighboring hunters shout at them to quiet down.

An hour passes. Riyo removes her button-up shirt again and ties it around her head, and Barriss gathers her cloak tighter around herself. They huddle together, with Barriss’s head resting on Riyo’s shoulder. Around them, a couple hunters come and go, taking their gear and their food with them. In the distance, the piers and the guard oil lamps burn bright. Riyo keeps her eyes trained on Ahsoka, who still hasn’t moved. She does this despite her encroaching exhaustion, because her gnawing stomach won’t let her sleep otherwise.

“Why do they call you ‘Snow Walker?’” Barriss asks in a soft, sleepy voice. She turns the locks over in her hands. “Sanele called you that, and you told Mrs. Kortzeer you were snow-walking too. It’s not a slur, is it?”

“It’s not. Snow Walkers go out into the wilderness to survive on their wits in order to worship and curry favor with the Blizzard God.”

“The Blizzard God?”

“One of the gods of the major pantheon. He was the first Pantoran to murder another, and that is why He is the God of War. He did it to get back one of his stolen elk, and that is why He is also the god of Justice and elk. When Pantorans Snow Walk, they can stay in the woods, or they can travel down to the site of the first murder, like a pilgrimage of some sort.”

“So you look like one of these Snow Walkers?”

“I suppose I do. I don’t think I can truly call myself that though. There’s a proper way to Snow Walk, and what we’re doing isn’t it.”

“What would make it proper, then?”

“We’d need to be drugged out of our minds.” Riyo bites her lip to keep from laughing as Barriss stares.

“You’re not serious.”

“I very much am.” But Riyo’s laughter dies on her lips as she spies a flash of green in the distance. Barriss gasps and scrambles upright.

“She did it!” Barriss grabs Riyo’s hand and together, they make their way back to Ahsoka, moving as fast as the ice will allow.

Ahsoka stands up and uses the Force to levitate the seal out of the hole and onto the ice, then unceremoniously throws her arms out as she slips on the ice and threatens to fall.

“Whoa!” Ahsoka plants her feet firmly on the ice, then reaches up under her parka to clip her lightsaber back onto her belt. “Hey, guys.”

“Eish! Come here, you big bruiser.” Elated, Riyo reaches up and kisses Ahsoka’s cheek, then turns to the seal. Ahsoka puts a hand over her face as her lekku stripes darken.

Riyo rolls the seal over onto its back and stands with one foot on either side of it. It’s not the biggest she’s seen; it’s only about a meter long and maybe twenty-two kilograms, but it’s still a pretty good catch. There’s a thin, charred line running through the back of the neck where Ahsoka killed it, but it’s otherwise intact.

“We could drag it back to shore and cook it,” Barriss says, but she trails off when Riyo takes out her knife. “Er…Riyo?”

Riyo got this knife when she turned twenty last year. It belonged to her father, and her grandfather before him. Usually, knives like this are passed down to sons, but Riyo has no brothers, so she got it. Riyo places the blade of knife against the throat of the seal and pauses. If she’s not careful, she’s going to cut herself something awful.

KSHOOM. Ahsoka ignites her lightsaber again, washing everything in bright green light. She holds it aloft so that Riyo can see what she’s doing.

“Thanks.” Riyo smiles at her before focusing on the seal. It took many camping trips and many seals before she committed the entire dressing process to memory, and while she’s spent the last three years on Coruscant, she still remembers it all.

Cut around where the flippers join the body of the seal, both front and back. Don’t chop them off completely—that will come later—but just deep enough to cut through the pelt and the blubber. After that, cut across the neck to make room for the knife, then make one slice down the length of the belly.

The seal will open like a purse, revealing a thick layer of blubber. If the cut is deep enough, then it will also reveal the red meat underneath.

“That is a really sharp knife,” Barriss says.

“Yes, it is,” Riyo says.

“Have you cut yourself before? Like accidentally?” Ahsoka asks.

“I have gotten many gnarly cuts from this knife,” Riyo says. But it was inevitable while she was learning how to do all this. Everyone who learns the art become familiar with emergency care wards, and if one were to look carefully at her hands and forearms now, they would see thin, light blue scars crossing through the net of her tattoos.

The three of them fall silent as Riyo renders the seal further down. There is a natural seam between the layer of blubber and the red meat. Cut the blubber away, one side at a time. Slits will need to be made through the pelt to free the flippers, but after that, the pelt will fall away. Roll the carcass from side to side to cut the rest of the seal free from the pelt, and when the seal is free, drag it away from the pelt and blubber to a fresh patch of ice.

The night is filled with the hum of Ahsoka’s lightsaber and the creak of tendons and sinew as Riyo manipulates the seal carcass. Ahsoka watches with hungry eyes, and Barriss is entranced too, probably from a medical point of view. One of Riyo’s friends studied to be a surgeon, and he once mentioned watching butcher holo-vids to better understand the spatial working of the body.

Steam rises from the seal into the cold air as Riyo chops through the cartilage of the ribcage. Her hands and arms are stained with dark purple blood, and while she’s being careful not to be too messy, there are already some spatter stains on her clothes.

The blubber and pelt are a relatively clean place to place the harvested meat. Manipulate the front flippers to locate the shoulder sockets, then slice through until the entire limb, including the shoulder blade, is separated form the rest of the carcass. Chop off the flippers. Keep them if there is a way to further process them later, but discard otherwise. The back flippers can be harvested in a similar method.

There’s a respectable amount of ready meat on the pad of blubber by now. Riyo straightens up to catch her breath. “Have at it, Ahsoka! You get first choice.”

“Yes! Riyo, you’re the best!” Ahsoka jams the hilt of her lightsaber into a crack in the ice, freeing her hands. She picks up a rack of ribs and bites down, tearing the meat from the bone. Barriss politely faces away from the spectacle.

“Won’t this make it harder to transport it?”

Riyo looks up from the seal carcass. “Huh?”

“I mean, we could gather the pelt and the fat around the meat like a sack, but it’d still be messy.”

“Oh! Between the three of us, we’ll demolish a seal this size. There won’t be any leftovers. Well, wait.” Riyo gestures towards the flippers that have been carelessly tossed to the side. “The wolves can have that.”

“I think you’re missing my point.”

“No, I understand. How thorough was your research into Pantoran cuisine?”

“Non-existent. I focused on politics instead, because of the nature of our mission.”

“So this must be enlightening. I was going to take us hunting like this anyway, after the third day of the Summit ended, so we’re actually ahead of schedule.”

Riyo returns to the carcass and cuts away a couple bite-sized pieces of red meat and offers one to Barriss. Barriss gingerly takes the piece between her forefinger and thumb, her lip curling in disgust.

“Am I supposed to sear this with my lightsaber?”

Riyo pops the raw meat into her mouth and chews with gusto. Throughout her travels to the corners of the galaxy, and despite all the things she’s eaten (it is astounding what rare dishes some people will offer a Republic senator to impress them) nothing has come remotely close. Fresh seal meat is gamey, but is otherwise indistinguishable in texture from raw fish.

Ahsoka shrieks with delight as Barriss gasps.

“I didn’t know Pantorans could eat raw meat too!” Ahsoka says.

“Only fresh seal and fish, as is tradition.” Riyo cuts another small chunk and eats that too. She groans, then continues her work. “Come on, Barriss, it’s good!”

“It really is good, Barriss.” Ahsoka gathers the cleaned rib bones into a pile and picks up another portion from the blubber. The bottom half of her face is purple with blood.

Barriss sighs. “Yes, but you’re Togruta, and Togruta are equipped to eat raw meat!”

“Try one bite, and if you don’t like it, you can just cook it with your lightsaber,” Riyo says.

Riyo tosses the remaining bits of meat onto the blubber and leaves the spent carcass. She kneels down next to the blubber and begins slicing the cuts down to a more manageable size.

Barriss looks at the meat in her hand, then puts it into her mouth. She chews slowly, her eyebrows knitted together.

“Well? Is it good?” Riyo asks.

“Decidedly so,” Barriss reluctantly admits.

“Kief! Have some liver.” Riyo slaps a third of the dark liver into Barriss’s hand. Barriss stares down at it in disgust, but Riyo turns to Ahsoka.

“Do you want some too?”

“Ooh! Yes, please.” Ahsoka makes a grabby motion with her hands.

“Here.” Riyo gives her a third and leaves the last bit for herself. The three of them sit around the seal pelt, taking whatever they wish. Out of the darkness comes a white Pantoran fox, making its rounds through all the fishing holes and begging the hunters and fishermen for scraps. It’s fluffy, with stubby ears and a bushy tail almost as big as its body. It keeps its distance when Ahsoka growls at it, but it doesn’t leave.

“I wonder who put the bounty on your head,” Ahsoka says. “It could be that Rommeruk guy.”

“The late Chairman’s son? I don’t think so,” Riyo says.

“This isn’t an insult against your moon, Riyo, but aren’t there powerful crime families here? Maybe one of them put the bounty on you,” Barriss says.

“Hah, no. No, that’s impossible. If one of the Families was behind it, it would start a war,” Riyo says.

“Why would that start a war?” Barriss asks.

Riyo is silent for a few moments, torn as to what she should say.

“Oh kriff, okay. You don’t have to answer that,” Ahsoka says with a sudden air of understanding.

Barriss frowns. “But….”

“She doesn’t have to answer that,” Ahsoka says again, more pointed this time.

Barriss sighs. “Very well.”

Perhaps she shouldn’t say, as it’d color their opinion of her so terribly, but Riyo tells herself that they are her dear friends. They should know and they wouldn’t judge her so harshly.

“I’m one of the youngest senators in the history of the Republic, let alone in Pantoran history. It shouldn’t have been possible for me to get elected, but it happened anyway, because I had help.” Riyo says this as carefully as she can.

“So that’s how you did it. I always wondered,” Barriss whispers.

They fall silent again. Riyo picks up the discarded intestines and tosses it further away, and the Pantoran fox scampers off to get it.

“What are we going to do about the blockaded waterfront? We can’t possibly hunt and fish enough for everyone in Bravado. Nor could we smuggle that much food into the town,” Barriss says.

“Not to mention the quota of a hundred seal. What could the Count possibly do with that much seal? It’s incredibly wasteful,” Riyo says.

“We’re gonna do something about it, right?” Ahsoka asks.

“We must! We cannot allow an entire town to starve. Although.” Barriss falters. “It isn’t within the mission parameters.”

“The mission parameters are to escort me, correct?” Riyo asks.

“Yes. And to protect you.”

“Then escort and protect me when I go see the Count,” Riyo says.

Amazingly, Barriss laughs again, the rare sound sweet and full. “Very well.”

Riyo kneels next to the ice hole and dips her hands in, cleaning the blood from them. She cups her hands and brings up some water to wash her face. “Ugh. I know the count responsible for this area; Count Anathi Mafoo. It’s not like him to be so cruel, but you never know with aristocracy. We’ll just have to pay him a visit.”

“Awesome!” Ahsoka finishes her bite of meat and goes to the ice hole to wash up too. “What do we do with the pelt?”

“One of the locals will take it. Waste not and such. May I?” Riyo points at the lightsaber.

“Sure.”

Riyo plucks the lightsaber from the ice and waves it over her head, using it as a signal flare of some kind. About fifty yards out, one of the neighboring fishermen picks up his lantern and swings it from side to side several times. Riyo waves again, then returns Ahsoka’s lightsaber to her.

Want to read this on Ao3 or on FF.net? Click here for the links.

#star wars #star wars the clone wars #Ahsoka Tano #barriss offee #riyo chuchi #fanfiction #fanfic #artillery writes

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cinvhetinordo · 6 years ago

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Redemption

[10:07] Jorval Ordo traveled far from the frigid wastes of shogun to the lush forests of Onderon. Equally worthy for a warrior's mettle, but in very different ways. The chieftain ventured into the clan's establishment, his Dathomiri lance in tow - alive with the soft humming of the electricity that coursed through it. His arrival was heralded by heavy foot falls against the wooden floors. It was alive with activity - banter and fights happened with regularity though he paid them little mind. Alor'ad stood out from the crowd and he approached her. "Su'cuy, ner Alor'ad." He greeted in a low, gutural sound, eventually standing before her though his gaze appeared to be more occupied by the selection of alcohols behind the counter.

[10:13] Nicci Ordo had just arrived herself, finally returning from her trip to Nar Shaddaa. She herself was preoccupied with a myriad of thoughts as a result of the new information she had discovered. She had only just sat down, deep in thought, when Jorval walked through the door and addressed her. This was surprising. She had felt a tension around him and she was rarely addressed much. "Su'cuy," she grunted. She too was gazing at the many choices of alcohols behind the bar. Though she was known to be drunk quite often, today was the first time she had felt she needed one. "Oh I sent that...Grat'ua Alor to you a while back to see about housing up with Ordo. Did he ever send you a comm?"

[10:21] Jorval Ordo rolled his shoulders. He likewise enjoyed filling up on alcohol, mainly for the brawls that often followed the inhibition. "Hm." He grunted at her inquiry, "He found me on Shogun. He sought to fight together 'as equals.' He growled in reply. "He denied a house in that wretched gathering but favors one now. Confusing change of heart." He gestured to the bartender and called out: "Two Narcoleths. My tab." Ordering for Nicci as well as himself. Narcoleth was the strongest produced within Mandalorian space, and it was his favorite. "Come." He growled as he made his way toward one of the tables, "I need to speak with you."

[10:25] Nicci Ordo scowled. She never really liked people ordering for her. But at least he got her a narcoleth instead of netra'gal, for it was also her favorite. The bartender pulled out a bottle and poured her glass, but instead of taking the glass she just grabbed the bottle and followed him to the table. She pulled her helmet off so she could actually drink it, setting it on the table surface and looked at him, albeit with slight wary. "Lek?" she asked. She was not at that meeting, but it didn't matter. Only end results mattered.

[10:37] Jorval Ordo unsealed his helmet, but didn't pry it from his head entirely. Instead he merely pulled it up so that his scarred features were visible. A slight smirk became visible when she took the whole bottle, even giving a slight nod of approval. Still, his expression quickly turned hard as it usually was. His arms crossed over his plated chest and a moment of silence ensued. The stubborn warlord found it difficult to confide, to share his thoughts. He turned most others away, and mutilated those foolish enough to insist. Still, if there was anyone he deemed worthy of speaking to - it was the only other Mando'ad he saw as his equal. "I have made bad decisions." He growled in admittance. "I have fought alongside Kyrt'sade. I have killed many... some deserving. Others not. I know you only yield Ordo to me because of how I use my fists, not my mind. As I stand now I am unworthy of my grandfather's legacy... But I would see that change." He said, perhaps relinquishing as many words as he has ever said in a single

[10:37] Jorval Ordo: sentence. A finger on his cybernetic hand - the hand that Nicci herself took - pointed in her direction. "I need your help you achieve this. Your are wiser than I am. Tell me - How do I gain redemption?"

[10:49] Nicci Ordo almost choked on the narcoleth. She paused for a long moment, the bottle still held upright to her lips, liquid suspended in time as he spoke. She took a long drag from it with much swallowing, before she slowly set it down, wiping her mouth on the back of her gauntlet. It was several moments before she spoke, his words having caught her entirely off-guard. She wanted to think on this carefully, to give the respectful answer a question like that deserved. She exhaled heavily, then replied, "The first step toward redemption is to...acknowledge one's past mistakes. The stubborn...never learn anything. Your words now are...unexpected. But they inspire hope in my heart. You come to me asking how you may seek redemption, but you have already taken the first step yourself. The rest will be up to your actions, reflected in the way you lead this clan into its future. But more than that. Our people's numbers have grown small, and we have done that to ourselves. Disagreement over what it is to be

[10:49] Nicci Ordo mandalorian, killing each other over philosophy. I have come to believe it will drive us to extinction. I still hold to my beliefs as mando'ad but, have come to respect others beliefs as mando'ade as long as it does not dishonor the resol'nare. It is my opinion that, if you show not just our clan, but our people as a whole, that you care to see us thrive once again, it can erase your kyr'tsad past. There is no guide datapad on how to live. We will all make mistakes. It is what we do with those mistakes that define who we are. Who are you?"

[10:58] Jorval Ordo himself reached out for the bottle once she had finished, tilting his head back and taking a hearty gulp of it before setting it back hard on the table. All this while listening carefully to every word she had to say. He rolled his shoulders at the revelations. Nicci, a Mandalorian of few words like himself, likewise surprised him with such a speech. The notion of showing 'all others' outside his clan his intentions brought about a light scowl. Jorval did not like other clans. He was not as tolerant as she was, but he was also younger. "These other clans speak our language and wear the armor, but that is where our similiarities end. They take pride in being mercenaries and boot licks, lying to themselves by calling it 'honorable war.' I have nothing in common with these Mando'ade..." Her last question though, he answered promptly - "I am Jorval Kad, Alor be'Aliit Ordo. And I want to be worthy of that title."

[11:10] Nicci Ordo smirked a little. "That may be true. But we do not all have to be similar, to be children of Mandalore. They are all men and women who follow the resol'nare, who went through their trials and wear the armor. They are not aruetiise, they are one of us. They are our people, and they come in many sizes, shapes, colors, and personalities. While I abhor the mercenary way of life, in the past our efforts to show them -our- ideals has gotten us nowhere. We have been called kyr'tsad by the ignorant. But in thinking on it, can we blame them, when our approach was to call them boot-licks and liars? I have learned that words can have greater effect than fists at times, and bring about only a closed mind. We cannot fight our enemies if we are fighting among ourselves. We will never again have a Mand'alor if he will be killed due to a long line of challengers who disagree with every ounce of his beliefs, no matter what the beliefs are. If you speak with these other vod, and actually take the time to learn w

[11:10] Nicci Ordo they believe as they do, you may find you have more in common than you think, you just execute your plans differently." she responded to his first statements. To his last, she said. "And what does Jorval Kad want for Aliit Ordo? What does he want of himself?"

[11:21] Jorval Ordo took another swig of the bottle as she continued to advise him. As the Alor'ad she was doing precisely what she needed to do. He was silent whilst she spoke, hearing out every word with caution. His eye twitched when she spoke of accepting the other clans as brethren, but that was merely his own stubbornness. Even now, he managed to power through it and find reason in the notion. A simple grunt and nod would be all he offered in terms of agreement to the terms. it would be a hard path, but he could see himself coming to respect the others. It was her latter inquiry that weighed the heaviest on him, however. A small pause ensued before he answered, "For Ordo to be the mightiest of the clans. I want Mando'ade and aruetiise alike to know our name. For Mando'ade to respect it, and for aruetiise the tremble at it. I would see us be larger than Skirata, and to remain a family through every war. As for myself..." He shrugged, "If I do not die a glorious death, then I hope to remain worthy. Have a family, and

[11:21] Jorval Ordo: bear children to pass this on to."

[11:29] Nicci Ordo actually smiled a little. "Those are noble ambitions. In order to be given respect, one must be willing to show respect. I believe if you can do that, then that is a reachable goal. Sometimes our greatest challenges are the ones we give ourselves, within our hearts. Your biggest obstacle is your stubbornness. You must beat it in submission and take control over it, not let it control you. I did not believe you could do it before. Now I think you are ready to. If Ordo can show they respect the way of life of the other clans then we will be respected among them. Our battle prowess will be enough to make aruetiise tremble before us. And our clan will grow, and we will be a name recognized once again. And when that happens, we will be in a position to lead by example. Others will be more open to listening, and we may yet be able to convince our people that the mercenary way of life is but a pale glimmer of the glory we could be after."

[11:36] Jorval Ordo paused somewhat to process the information, taking a last swig of the bottle before offering Nicci a light nod. "vor'e, Alor'ad." He growled before pulling his helmet back down over his head and sealing it in place. He rose from his seat and gathered his lance, offering another nod her way. "The bottle is on me. One day soon, we ought to have a drinking competition." He said with a rough chuckle. "But until then, you have my comm, should you need anything. It is time Ordo grew into a family."

[11:43] Nicci Ordo smirked, "We own the bar, ner Alor. The bottle is on the clan when we do inventory. I drink half the stock anyway," she burped. "You would lose that contest at least," she smirked. "I will use your comm more often. Might have a couple new people coming in. I will let you know."

[11:45] Jorval Ordo then left like a boss

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