tahiri veila hates shoes (hatesshoes) wrote in timestreamic, @ 2016-08-07 16:02:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log/thread, anakin solo, tahiri veila |
July 11th (Backdated) Anakin forgets planned plans with his BFF characters. Tahiri Veila & Anakin Solo time. Late at night location. Outside the Solo apartment on Coruscant rating. C for extreme Cute? Mentions of averted character death also status. Comeplete |
Tahiri had been worried about Anakin. She knew him too well not to know when something was bothering him, even if she frequently didn't understand what was going on in his head. Boys. Forever a mystery. And Anakin was never that great at opening up and talking to her. She wasn't sure if that was because he was him or because a part of him still saw her as a kid. She knew a part of what was bothering him had to do with Jacen. It wouldn't take a genius to figure that out. She was worried, too. The thought of his brother going through the things she had when she'd been captured by the Yuuzhan Vong made her feel like she might be sick. She hadn't had much time to talk to Anakin about it, though, with so many people being hurt and Jaina among them. Tahiri had, perhaps a little uncharacteristically, hung back and kept her mouth shut for most of the trip home while Anakin helped his sister with her healing trance. Plans had been made in their return, though. Today had been Anakin’s birthday and when Tahiri had said they should do something, he hadn't disagreed with her. She’d showed up at his quarters with a little cake ready to celebrate, but then he hadn't been there. As the hours passed, Tahiri started to grow more and more annoyed. She could feel him in the Force, so she knew he wasn't hurt or dead or anything. He was just... Standing her up. When he finally arrived - past the hour when his birthday was technically over, her bare feet had been tapping impatiently on the ground. She jumped up when she saw him and before either of them could get a word out in greeting, she reached out and punched him in the arm. Hard. “Anakin Solo,” she started in immediately, “where have you been?” Her ensuing tirade was a lengthy and colorful one and she only stopped because she needed to breathe. There was plenty more names she could have called him. “Well, aren't you going to say anything?” she demanded finally, as if he could have gotten a word in edgewise. Anakin had completely forgotten about everything until such time as he showed up and there was Tahiri waiting for him. And even when he initially saw her he'd kind of forgotten until he realized she looked mad and then he remembered. It was his birthday. Of all the ridiculous, shitty, dumb days for his birthday to be on, the only way it could have gotten worse probably was the Yuuzhan Vong showing up to take Coruscant - which, if anyone was checking, wasn't a request just an observation. The punch wasn't unexpected, nor was the long tirade, although Anakin found himself honestly wishing that she just wouldn't tonight. He was tired. He was worried about his brother. And even if he shouldn't be, he was kicking himself for having allowed his brother to be taken. Maybe that didn't have anything to do with it, really, but it didn't seem like it could bode well. While he hadn't had visions of Jacen as a dark Jedi, he'd had visions of Tahiri that way - when she'd been taken by the Yuuzhan Vong - it wasn't a pleasant memory. His cousin had been a good distraction. The two of them had flown out with X-wings and spent some time in space and Ben was a reasonably good pilot - not unexpected really but nice to confirm - and then they'd come back and Anakin may have had a Corellian whiskey. It was stronger than he normally had, but it wasn't as if it was terribly easy for a Jedi to get drunk if they didn't want to get drunk and he hadn't wanted to get drunk, he'd just wanted something to do that wasn't thinking about his brother and the news Ben had dropped on him, and he'd gotten that - at least. But at the expense of forgetting his set-up with Tahiri. He had the grace to at least feel guilty about this fact. "You realize for me to talk, and not talk over you, that you actually have to stop talking for more than a half a second?" He rebuttled when she finally took a breath. "And I'm sorry, I was out with Ben and I kind of forgot what day it was. Don't be mad Tahiri, please?" He wasn't certain he could handle her being mad at him right now. Everything even normal things felt a little shaky right now. She just shrugged, used to that response by now, but then there was something in his apology that kind of sapped away all her righteous indignation. In that moment, Tahiri didn’t even need the Force to know Anakin was upset in a completely different way than she’d just been. She probably could have tried to feel him out and figure out what was wrong, but she decided she’d rather he just talk to her. “I’m not mad,” she lied. Well, half-lied, because she wasn’t that mad anymore, even if she’d been really annoyed just a minute ago. Any other time, his admission that he’d forgotten her - or the day, whatever, would have just sparked more of her anger. If she was honest with herself, she’d admit that a part of her still worried that he saw her as a little kid. How was she supposed to really be mad, though, when he was begging her not to be. “C’mon,” she decided, jerking her head away from the doorway. “Let’s go somewhere, wherever you want, and you can tell me what you and Ben did that was so interesting you forgot about your supposed best friend.” Okay, maybe she was still a little mad. But at least she wasn’t calling him names anymore. "Not supposed," Anakin corrected automatically, but there was some relief in the response because at least it seemed as if Tahiri was willing to talk to him about something other than yelling at him for forgetting her. He really hadn't meant to forget her. Everything just felt so crazy right now and it hadn't improved with the conversation with Ben. Everything Ben had told him - and Anakin didn't even know if he could tell Tahiri any of it. He wasn't certain he should tell anyone. He just mostly wasn't certain what to do with it. Ben had trusted him, and Anakin was glad that he had, but Anakin still wasn't certain he could believe what he'd been told - not about Jacen. But for the moment the only decision he needed to make was where to go and it was a decision he didn't have a good idea about what it should be. The space of the X-wing had been nice, but it was out as something he and Tahiri could do together. They could go below and find a cantina and talk, but that was more people around than Anakin wanted and it was unlikely to be a place he'd really talk to her, so that left what options? "There's an open balcony a couple of floors up," he suggested. "It's got a bunch of garden stuff on it for the building. Maybe we should go up there." Tahiri considered it a moment before nodding. She could guess the thought process behind the suggestion. Normally, a cantina would have been her first choice, but Anakin wouldn’t talk to her there and she got the distinct impression that’s what he needed to do - to talk. “Let’s do that, then,” she agreed, letting him lead the way up. It didn’t take them long and she had to admit that view was kind of nice. More importantly, it was quiet and it was private. She admired the view from the balcony for a second - that was all her patience would allow - before turning to look at him. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on with you now?” she asked, forcing herself to hold back the dozens of other questions and comments on her tongue. Shutting up wasn’t exactly easy for her. She had a tendency to not let him get a word in edgewise. But her doing all the talking wasn’t going to work for this. So, for once, Tahiri actually let him talk. Anakin had been expecting the question. The fact that it wasn't followed-up on with a million other questions was kind of nice honestly. He stepped over to the railing and put his hands down on it. Truthfully it was difficult to really say exactly what was on his mind. He didn't know if he could. If he talked to anyone about exactly what Ben had told him shouldn't it be Jaina? And he wasn't certain he could even tell Jaina just yet. It was too much. It was more than he really wanted to think about. He breathed out trying to make sense of all of those emotions. He'd had a little bit to drink with Ben, and while it wasn't enough to really inhibit a Jedi, he could pretend it was enough to make this easier. "Don't be mad at me Tahiri but I don't think I can." He held up a hand to ward off any further questions or comments. "Not right now. I just… Honestly I don't even know how to say what I'm thinking about. I need time to sort through it myself. I will tell you, it just may be a while." He turned around completely so that he could look at her. He did feel bad about having forgotten their plans, really bad, and maybe he should take them to get hot chocolate or something after this. Coruscant was still here, after all, if just barely. They might as well make the memories while they could. "Maybe part of it is just being here in the first place. I shouldn't have been. And I should have been. I feel really confused about this whole mission. When the Agency first pulled me out and Jacen told me about what had happened? I didn't know what to do with any of that. So I helped with the mission they put us on, and then they sent me here and I'm reliving all of this all over again, having not had a chance to even think about in the first place, you know?" “What do you mean you can’t-” Tahiri had half a mind to ignore the hand he held up and barrel on anyway. She hated the idea of him keeping secrets from her, whether it was about her or not. When he explained further, she gave a little annoyed huff, but she let him have his way. For now, anyway. She was determined to get it out of him, even if it didn’t happen tonight. She couldn’t look at him when he brought up the fact that he shouldn’t be here. Every time she thought about Anakin dying- she just couldn’t. She couldn’t accept it was real and it wasn’t now. Whatever she’d been told, whatever the original future had been, it was different now. Anakin was here and he was alive. He might be conflicted about it, but she couldn’t be. She didn’t care what else they had to sacrifice. She didn’t care if it was wrong. Anything was worth not having to lose him. “I happen to be really glad you’re here,” she said after a moment of uncharacteristic silence. It wasn’t like Tahiri to not have a lot to say. Losing Anakin, though? That was something she didn’t even want to think about. She felt like something was going to break inside of her when she did. Even if she’d wanted to admit that, she didn’t really have the words. It was the silence as much as anything that pulled Anakin's attention out of his mind and back to the moment itself. He turned his head to gaze at her for a moment, a touch of a smile pressing at his lips. He didn't break the silence, but instead, almost without thinking he reached over and took her hand in his. "I'm glad I'm here too." The words were simple and characteristically short, but heartfelt. He might be wandering around giant pastures of philosophy trying to figure out the end result of what they'd changed, and whether or not it was good, and whether what they'd sacrificed the wrong thing, or even accomplished anything at all, especially if what Ben said about Jacen was true, but at the moment standing on a balcony with Tahiri felt right. He turned so he could face her, his hand still caught up in hers. Anakin realized that for all the sorting out he'd said they needed to do prior to Myrkr, well, the first Myrkr, that right now things felt fairly clear. This was Tahiri, she was his best friend, she was beautiful, and she made him a better Jedi when it came down to it. What was it that Master Ikrit said - the two of you are stronger together? Something like that. Well right now they'd get the chance to figure out what that meant, and that was something that felt inarguably for the best. His gaze found hers, and he pulled all of his focus out of the impossible to pin down and into this specific moment, onto Tahiri. He wanted to kiss her. He probably shouldn't want to kiss her right now. Then again, they'd survived Myrkr, and it was his birthday. He bit down on his lower lip briefly. "We could still go out, if you want? It's not too late, just pretty late." Tahiri looked back up in surprise when she felt his hand on hers. It was a nice feeling, not one that was completely new, but in the moment it wasn’t something she wasn’t really expecting. It was enough to chase her darker thoughts away and when he said he was glad to be here she couldn’t help but smile back at him. She didn’t care if they’d sacrificed the wrong thing. She didn’t care if Anakin being alive was going to screw up the whole galaxy. That was selfish and un-Jedi-like of her, but it was hard to care about that when she was standing here with her best friend in the whole world and he was alive after a mission he’d been meant to die in. She looked up at him, a half smile on her face as her fingers tightened around his. “Isn’t your birthday technically over?” she asked, not quite objecting, but not quite ready to let him completely off the hook, either. Of course, it didn’t matter for her eventual answer. If Anakin wanted to still go out, she was going to be on board with that. “I think that means you forfeit your right to cake. I mean, we can still go somewhere, I guess, but if it’s not your birthday anymore, we don’t really have anything to celebrate, so no cake. For you. I still get cake for being the most patient and understanding friend in the universe.” She might have sold the teasing better if she could have said it all with a completely straight face. Anakin grinned, a genuine, extremely Solo, half-grin. He absolutely wanted cake, but he was clearly going to have to fight for it. Well, he could fight for it. And with Tahiri, well it wasn't for certain that he'd win, but he figured that he could probably be pretty persuasive if he wanted to be. "We totally should go out, and you're saying it's not my birthday anymore but somewhere it is still my birthday, and that means I definitely get cake. Along with you, of course, because you are the most patient and understanding friend in the universe." He tightened his fingers gently against hers and took a step forward. "Besides what am I supposed to do if you're sitting there eating cake and you're not letting me eat any?" “Watch me eat it, of course.” It was hard not to notice him moving closer to her and that was something she certainly wasn't going to object to. She wasn't sure exactly when things had changed between them and when she'd started to see Anakin as something more than the best friend of her childhood. She knew a lot of her resentment about him going off and leaving her on Yavin 4 while he had his own adventures had been hurt over feeling like she wasn't as important to him as he was to her. Some part of her had even known there was a reason for her fear that he saw her as a kid that went beyond missing her best friend. If she was honest, there was a part of her that still couldn't quite believe he could be serious about her as anything more, but if he wanted to be closer right now, it was something she definitely wasn't going to object to. “I guess if it's still your birthday somewhere, I might be willing to share a little. Like maybe a bite,” she conceded, trying to keep her expression somber. There was a sparkle in her eyes that probably gave her away, though. She was probably going to keep giving him shit for a little while, but there wasn't much chance she would really make him watch her eat cake without letting him have any. "You know as fun as that sounds, and it does sound amazingly enjoyable," Anakin shook his head with a chuckle, "I think I'd like to have my own." He looked up and it occurred to him that this conversation hadn't been going to happen. In another timeline they would have never gotten to this point. In another timeline he would have already been a part of the Force and Tahiri would have been alone. That was a rather depressing thought, but at the same time it somehow was also a bit of an empowering one, because he was here. He had a chance to figure out what on earth he and Tahiri were doing, or would be doing. They had the chance to continue fighting for the galaxy together like Master Ikrit had seen them doing. That wasn't something to be thrown away. Anakin looked down at their hands again and then back up. "On the other hand, if it comes down to having some, or not having some, I could probably live with sharing it with you. It'll hardly be the first thing we've shared is it?" Tahiri pretended to think about it for a moment before she tilted her head to the side a little. “Yeah, I guess I could stand to share with you,” she admitted with a smile. This was nice. This was good. It was one of so many moments they hadn't been supposed to get. It was hard to be upset with him for getting distracted when she thought about that. She supposed it was stupid to spend the time they had now being annoyed over something that was actually kind of stupid. It was enough that she could pretty easily forgive his forgetting her for a little while. “So, where do you want to go?” she asked him. There were a good handful of places they could get decent cake and if she was being honest, she didn't much care where they went as long as it was together. Anakin grinned, a full fledged, lopsided grin. He'd been an idiot earlier, forgetting about her, and he'd had good reason, sure, and someday he'd even explain those reasons to Tahiri and probably she'd understand, or maybe she'd just tell him he was an idiot for not explaining sooner - that last felt likely but he couldn't help that he couldn't find the words for any of it right now. Even right now, it felt like it was receding, at least enough to not be at the front of his mind. At the front of his mind instead was his best friend, this girl, well, he supposed maybe woman - at least she felt more and more like a woman to him recently - who he was endlessly grateful for having in his life. He squeezed her hand and shrugged. "I think we should get an air-taxi and we should head over towards the Opera House cause there will be all sorts of places open late over there cause they like to catch the after theatre crowds, and we can see which one strikes our fancy and we can do it. And hey it's on the Agency's credit so we can do any place we want, even the most ridiculously over-priced one, what do you say?" Tahiri’s smile grew a little more devious at the latter part of his suggestion. She knew she had the agency to thank for Anakin being alive now, but that didn't make her like them any more. She'd heard enough from the others they'd brought here, she'd seen how they didn't act to help, really, and heard and seen the way they seemed to like to mess with the people they brought here - people who she understood had been brought into in against their will. No matter how grateful she was for the individuals who had helped save the young man in front of her, she couldn't resist a chance to stick it to the ones in charge. “I say that sounds like the best idea you've had all night,” she agreed, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “It IS your birthday. I'm sure they'd really want us to live it up and celebrate it right.” |