Her feet had touched hundreds of planets. Siri had seen hundreds of towns, villages, cities…..human, Ithorian, Corellian, Toydarian, Torgruta, Twi’lek civilizations. It felt like second nature now, finding the flow of the people towards the center of activity, picking out the areas as they sprawled. A little test, to make sure she hadn’t lost her touch. When she finally asked for directions to the caf- the coffee shot, she corrected herself, her instincts proved correct. It was only a block away.
Yes, people gravitated towards one another in the same ways all over the galaxy. If she were to listen to what Georgie and Obi-Wan and Korra were telling her, this perhaps was another galaxy, one unknown to the Jedi, the Republic, everyone. Sobering. But she took refuge in the fact that the Force yet flowed here, strong and true. She could trust in that.
Walking in, the tall blond scanned the room for her tea companion.
For Georgie’s part, she was still adjusting. It was one thing to be in a world where everything was really wrong to be thrust into one where things were still wrong, but on an entirely different sort of scale. She worried for Melanie, although worry was always a bit hard, but she took a slight bit of comfort in knowing she wasn’t entirely alone. Granted she and Jon weren’t talking, again, but that was a choice she was making. She’d have to talk to him again, and soon.
In the meantime she’d make some friends. There wasn’t an out, so there was little else she could do. And Siri seemed to come from a universe where she’d been able to go everywhere so that couldn’t be easy. She still remembered how she’d felt at uni, and it was a good way to remember Alex to offer Siri the same hand Georgie herself had once been given.
She pushed all that away when she heard the bell for the door and smiled at the woman she assumed was Siri. She looked like the little images, at least. Georgie raised her hand in greeting. “Hello! Over here.”
Siri brightened as Georgie waved her over. Making friends immediately was never a poor way to handle a new place. “Hello. And thank you for taking my thinly disguised invitation,” Siri replied, good-natured, as she took the opposite seat. “I’m not usually on a new planet without having a mission assigned to me first. Free time, a sheer luxury.” She didn’t add that it was nonexistent during a war, or that she usually chafed at that when she had little to do. Right now, there seemed to be no Separatists here, no war, and Siri was unsure she wanted to broach that just yet. “Have you ordered? I’ve got only this plastic card which I assume stores credits.” She smiled as she corrected herself. “Dollars, I think it is said here?”
Georgie waved before sitting down again herself. “Don’t worry about it, I needed to clear my head anyway. And tea is always appreciated.” She gave with a smile. Siri’s comment was a bit worrisome. Georgie only knew the movies, but her interests had shifted to the supernatural after her encounter so she’d never gotten much into it. So it was hard to understand. She did figure Siri must have been at war, which was a whole lot on it’s own. “I can’t really imagine. I’ve a job, yes, but nothing that stressful.”
She shook her head and offered Siri the menu. “Decided but not ordered yet. Figured I’d wait. And yes, trust me I’m used to pounds so it’s rather different for me too. But I do know a bit of the basics so I can walk you through it if you like? But don’t worry about this, on me remember?”
Taking the menu, Siri shrugged. “So be it, but next time, I’ve got it.” Credits had never been much of a problem; being a Jedi had that built in. But it didn’t mean she was unfamiliar with commerce, at least. She dropped her eyes to the menu, grateful it seemed to be in Basic, and found a coffee that was not wholly exotic. “This is quite a selection,” she observed, taking a little more time to read further. They definitely took their beverages seriously around here. “I take it coffee must be the most popular item around.” It was no different than some places with caf; any stimulant to get creatures up and moving.
Raising her eyes to Georgie again, Siri rested her arms on the table and studied her face. “Are you alright?” she asked, concerned. “A week is not much time. I’m…..used to traveling, but I got the impression it’s not the same for you?”
“And by next time you’ll have gotten a handle on the new system,” someone who traveled a lot and dealt with a lot of different civilizations and customs probably was trained to be pretty adaptive. Georgie couldn’t really say she was much the same. The DOA had given plenty of resources though, so she had options if she wanted to talk. She hadn’t been able to before, as her major problem back home was not a fixable problem, but here it was different. “No Starbucks where you’re from I’m guessing?” She preferred shops like these, but she’d passed one of those on the way and she’d been less surprised then she ought to have been. It seemed perfectly normal for the chain to appear in a magical, almost fantasy land.
“It isn’t. I’ve never been outside England. And there’s my girlfriend.” She took a breath still feeling worried. “I will be, I think.” She’d gotten fairly used to the world back home, surely she could do the same here. “It’s just a lot, and not what we’re her for. We’re here for tea and to get you a change of clothes.”
“Starbucks sounds like an interesting name, but no, nothing like that where I am from. Or, more accurately, where I lived. Jedi are really just from the Academy; we leave our families far too young to have much of a connection there.” She said it without regret or sadness, just matter-of-fact. It had never bothered her; the calling to the Force was her life, the Jedi her family.
“It is a lot.” Siri watched her, letting the intuition the Force lent guide her words and actions. It was simple to read the anxiety there, along with the determination, but then one didn’t need to be adept with a galaxy-wide all-knowing force to tell that much. “I think we are probably here for anything that comes up,” she chided, her smile widening. “I’m all for some different clothes,” she gestured to her form-fitting red flight suit, “if for no other reason than to blend in a little better. And of course, a drink. But we’re here, together. If talking would help, I’m a good listener.” Prompting Georgie, she added, “Would you tell me her name, your girlfriend?”
Granted, Georgie didn’t have a lot of knowledge here. She’d never gone out of her way to see the movies, but she’d gone when asked and followed discussions as best she could whenever people in her friend group had had those but the intricacies like Siri was talking about wasn’t something she’d known. And it did not sit right that the Jedi took kids so it made her frown. “I’m sorry, but that isn’t right. You shouldn’t have to leave your family, not unless you want to.” God knew her mother hadn’t been able to understand, so Georgie hadn’t talked about her experience because of that and because she hadn’t wanted to worry her, but leaving her mother behind had never crossed her mind.
Siri was being kind, but Georgie still took a moment to order some tea. She’d only just met siri and didn’t want to burden her with too much. “Do you have any style you prefer?” That was an easy thing to settle on and a good thing to know. But talking about Melanie was never hard so she smiled. “Her name’s Melanie. We haven’t been together long, but we really clicked.” She paused as she debated, wondering how much to say without breaking any confidences. “She recently got blinded, and she’s still adjusting. I want to support her, and I worry.”
“Don’t be sorry for your observations. It certainly seems cruel, from the outside.” Siri did not look offended at all at Georgie’s words. “The thing is, there are a lot of abilities that come with being sensitive to the Force. A common one is being able to sense the emotions and intent of others. For a child, interpreting that from parents is confusing and can be very detrimental, especially if those parents are not aware of it. Imagine feeling every small lie that a parent uses to protect their child, or when that parent is hiding an adult fear but doesn’t realize that their child feels it too. Raising a Force-sensitive child can hurt a parent’s bond with them very badly.” Siri paused when the tea was brought during her small talk. “I know it may seem cold to separate them, but it’s not without reason.”
The question about clothes suitably distracted her. “I hadn’t thought about it. Usually, I prefer clothes I can move easily in, and that adapt to different climates.” She grinned, a bit wryly. “It seems I’ve only one climate to worry about right now. But comfortable would be good.”
Her blue eyes warmed when Georgie spoke about her girlfriend. “I’m sorry to hear she was injured. If it helps….I knew a Jedi that was blinded, during a mission. She was..” Siri’s look grew faraway, almost wistful. “She always insisted that none of us should coddle her or treat her like she had changed. That she could, and would, still live her life the way she wanted. And she did. Her determination always impressed me.” There was a way she spoke, the tenses and the distance of the words, that said more as well. “I’m betting Melanie is a little like that….you tell me. Is she the sort to not back down from this new challenge?” She smiled again, briefly, as their tea was set on the table. “What made you click so well?”
It did sound more complicated, but to Georgie it still sounded a bit cruel. It felt like there could have been a better way of dealing with it. But it wasn’t her area of expertise, nor really her place to offer judgement. If she was in a position to change it, or to raise her voice so it could be heard she would but right here she’d just be yelling at Siri. and she didn’t think Siri had any power to change anything. “I don’t agree,” she still gave. “But that’s all I can do here. You’re not at fault and you can’t change what is.”
Then she nodded, taking that in mind. If they were in London she’d know where to go. But this weird fantasy land probably had similar things, and probably something close to what Siri was after. “Alright, comfortable is easy. We’ll skip the high end shops then,” she added with a smile. She listened then to Siri’s story. It reminded her a lot of Melanie. Melanie didn’t like being coddled either and there’d been a lot of give and take on the difference between coddling and trying to help Melanie adjust.
“She is,” she added with a gentle smile. “She always impresses me with how strong she is. She’s a fighter, so no she’s not one to back down. We had some arguments because I was trying to make things easier, and she felt that it wouldn’t help her in the long run. We found a middle ground however. She asks for help and I give it. We were talking about braille lessons and whether or not she’d want a service dog or a cane before…”she trailed off and sighed. “Well neither of those things are applicable back home right now.”
“Oh just a lot in common. Our lives were very similar and we have a lot of shared experiences. We also have a common interest. We both look into the supernatural and document it. She did a video channel,” she doubted Siri knew about Youtube,” and I do podcasts.” She was leaving a lot of it out, but only because she’d just met Siri.
Siri leaned a little forward, her body language showing interest and openness. “I wouldn’t expect you to change your opinion based solely on what I said,” she offered, with a nod. “Disagreement can be incredibly good. Better that flaws are pointed out, addressed. I would always rather those I know be honest with me. Lies, I can’t deal with.” She knew she had loved her upbringing, hadn’t missed the faint memory of home. Sometimes, she had seen others deal with a bout of homesickness, and she wondered at herself: was she too aloof to feel that way? All she had known was that she had only felt at home in the Temple. It was all she ever wanted.
Feeling the emotions rolling off of Georgie, Siri worked on exuding calm and comfort. “She sounds like Tahl. Back home, after Tahl was blinded, the Council assigned her a droid, nicknamed TooJay. I think Tahl spent more time avoiding TooJay than letting the droid help, but to be fair, the droid was beyond irritating. Anyway, Tahl did fight with a lot of us about it. She wanted to learn how to do it on her own….but to be fair, she also wanted to deny that anything was wrong. And that was just as hard on us, as it is for you to watch Melanie relearn.”
Having scanned some of the communications network and listened to others, Siri felt a passing recognition of the terms. “So when you say, ‘supernatural’, what do you mean? Tell me about the things you see or speak about. I would like to know.”
It was good to know that Siri would be open to such a discussion. Still though. “I don’t have enough facts, just my opinion. And this is something that should be debated, but I ought to have all my ducks in a row about it. Right now it just feels wrong, but that would discount your experiences and past. So we can table it, for now.” she added with a smile. “Wouldn’t be fair, otherwise.” If people just said her own experiences were wrong just based on a few facts she’d not be to keen about hearing it. Besides she didn’t want to cause too much upset with Siri. The poor woman had just gotten here, no need to cause a conflict right away.
“It is hard but she’s not denying anything’s wrong at least.” Given how everything had happened that would be odd. It wasn’t a detail she was giving though, which wasn’t entirely fair. Then again, this was Melanie’s story to share.. “I don’t know how she’d do with a droid, but we were talking about service animals before.” Once her cup came she set her hands around it. “But I have a cat so it was a lot of talk about how he’d adjust to it too. She’s got a cane though.” She smiled again, softer. “She’s doing well with it all. But it’s always hard seeing those you love struggling. You want to help, even when you know you shouldn’t.”
“Mostly ghosts. Anything part, yet not part, of the world. Sometimes other things people don’t believe are real, but I focus on ghosts and their manifestations. The ladies in white that are really common in America. Manifestations of people from the Victorian age. Things like that. It’s mostly touching history.. Touching lives that haven’t quite left us yet. It’s mostly repeating things that have already been talked about though, at least back home. All the popular spots have already been discussed, so you try and put a new spin on it. Here, though, it would be a vastly new thing and I’d get to talk about new things. It would be nice to do.”
Siri briefly wondered if other Jedi might come there, like Obi-Wan. She was beyond grateful to see him, but she missed the others more than she expected. “I will say that the other Jedi, those who lived at the Temple and trained and fought alongside me, they were family to me. No matter the hour, I knew I could find counsel and direction and comfort, if I needed it. I lacked for none of the things a traditional home held.” It hit her with a pang that she couldn’t even reach out to the others now via vidcall, or go back and visit her old home. Here, it all was more remote than the outermost rim.
She knew about help, though. “I suspect I am more like her,” Siri joked, quietly. “I never wanted help. I would turn down any offer to work with someone else. I did learn, though...cooperation always yields better results. A hard lesson, to be sure, since I value my independence, as I am sure she does.” Siri paused, before she added, “Do you have those you talk to outside of Melanie, about how you struggle with it as well? It changes your life, and none of us are immune to feelings.”
Listening, Siri rested her chin in her palm, her elbow on the table, as her other hand turned her tea cup. Speaking to those who had joined the Force was rare but not unheard of. Still, it didn’t seem to be the same. Ghost stories were prevalent on many of the worlds she visited, depending on the species, so it was familiar enough. “Are you going on a ghost hunt? That could be exciting. This land seems like it could have many unexplored areas.” Her innate desire for adventure lent some warmth to her words. “And I’ve always found that humans love telling stories to one another. But who are the ladies in white? That seems so specific.”
That made Georgie feel better. There was a lot to say about found family, and how blood wasn’t all you had. She shouldn’t really discount that. “See? That’s something I didn’t know, and shouldn’t discount. Family is family, whether or not you’re related by blood or not. You must miss them.” She missed her own family, and friends. She had Jon, but still.
She grinned and shook her head. “Melanie’s like that. She can take on the world, you know? But she’s learning that she can accept help.” She blinked then and wondered if she ought to mention she was immune to at least one of those feelings. But that wasn’t terribly relevant right now. “You mean like therapy? I don’t do that but I’ve other friends, both here and back home. But I’m not the one that went through all the things Melanie did. It’s not like I’ve pushed myself away you know? I’m just focusing on Melanie right now. And I’m fine. Really. Not just saying that.”
“Not really a ghost hunt. The nature of podcasts means I can’t do it on location. I just talk to people who’ve had experiences, whoever I can find that owns a building or something and touch on lore and the like. Hunting ghosts can be….dangerous.” Melanie had proven that and while they couldn’t make her be afraid, they could still hurt her. No reason to look for trouble where there wasn’t any need for it. “I’m not too sure how I’ll transfer it here, not yet, but I’ve some ideas. I’ve a friend who I think I can talk into helping me.” At the question of the ladies in white she smiled. “According to their histories they are always women who’ve gotten lost. Usually from a dance, or some sort of festivities, and they’ve died. People always describe them wandering along a road, usually dressed in a white dress, and asking for rides. They’re given them but then after a while or so the ones offering the ride look back to find nothing.” She gave a bit of a sad smile. “The ladies in white always seem to want to go home. Sad that they can’t.”
“I miss them very much.” Something that had not been far from her mind. She had taken for granted that she had the other Jedi at her back, no matter what. “I have Obi-Wan here, though. He is one of my closest friends, and more. Having him here makes this much easier. And it tempts me to be too comfortable, as well,” she added, with a faint smile. “Easier for us to forget about our oaths when it’s just the two of us.”
Siri watched the other girl as she promised she was fine. It felt true, and Siri had to consider that she didn’t know Georgie enough to pry as yet. “As Jedi, we always try to look inward as well, to take a critical eye to our own selves, to ensure that we don’t lie about our motivations and our desires. It’s hard but it’s useful. I am sorry to pry,” she added, gently, “as I ask due to my own habits. If you say you are fine, I believe you. And I just remind you that these are unusual circumstances.” That last part was said with a half-serious, half-teasing look.
“That is sad. I dislike thinking about souls not at peace.” Siri contemplated the idea of the ladies in white a moment longer as she sipped her tea. Tragic. Very similar to what she might find in one of those romance holovids that was meant solely to make one weepy. “So, no ghost hunts. Disappointing.” Her dry tone made a small joke of that. “But I would still like to listen to this podcast of yours. You know,” she continued, musing. “I’m not from your planet, as I imagine there are quite a few here who are not. Maybe you could start talking about the place back home, since we don’t know any better. You said before they have been talked out, but I’ve certainly never heard those stories. I would like to. You have a fresh audience here who is clueless,” she added, grinning.
Georgie’s first thought it shouldn’t matter, but then she wondered if it was really her place. But, Siri had offered advice too and seemed to be someone who was one of those people who could make friends upon meeting people. So if she put her foot in her mouth it would probably be fine. “I don’t mean to over step, but what does it matter if you forget your oaths.” Granted, Georgie didn’t know about these oaths, except that when she’d seen the movies she’d felt that if the one blonde kid had been allowed to be happy, none of the tragedies would have occurred. “Happiness is rare. I didn’t expect to find it with Melanie, and I’d never turn it away either. You’re allowed to be happy you know. And you have this chance here. The worst that could happen is it doesn’t work out.”
She sipped from her tea then before smiling. “That’s all the advice I have. But I do get it’s easier with friends. I’ve got my best friend here,” it was nice to be able to say that again. “I’d flounder without him I think. He’s a lot more adaptable then I am, which is oddly helping me adjust.” She nodded then, “it’s alright. Honestly talking about it is helping. I wouldn’t if I didn’t want to.”
“I don’t think they’re not at peace. I think it’s just memories.” She contemplated how to really put it for a moment. “Like a picture. Something frozen in time that keeps replaying itself.” At least the ones not tied to any of the Fears. She’d have to ask Jon to confirm but she was fairly sure there was a difference between regular ghosts, and those tied to the Fears. “A memory of what might be the last thing you did. If it's tragic, that’s stronger.” She chuckled then, “Well I have an audience, you’re the fourth person that said they’d listen. But I could do that, yeah. Touch on the things from my world, then here. Could be fun. But I’d need equipment so it might be a bit.”
“I am happy.” It was true; to Siri, just being in the same place as Obi-Wan made her happy. Talking, learning about this new planet, meeting those he called friends. Being away from the war, even though she carried a worry about those left behind, was she abandoning her duties, something she meditated on daily. “But I understand what you are suggesting. Why are those oaths important, given where we are, what our lives are now?” Siri picked up her tea, taking a sip. “They aren’t, in and of themselves. Obi-Wan and I, we are who we are, as Jedi, through and through and it is not oaths that make us that way. We could be together, in all ways, and still remain who we are, dedicated to our beliefs. I think the traditions underestimate the dedication we have.” She sighed, slightly. “But I cannot make that decision for someone else.” He said he would have left the Order had Satine asked it. But they had both once chosen to stay in the Order rather than chose the same path. She had to admit that she had not yet learned how much he had changed in three years. “I know one thing. After I died, as I did die in our own time, he moved on without me. He’s capable of it. I do not yet know what he thinks now, other than he missed me. I love him, and that’s enough.”
It was a lot to impart, but Siri never stood on lies or even mistruths. She would always be vitally honest.
“I understand what you mean about the memories….that does make more sense. And perhaps it is a little more reassuring,” she added, ruefully. “An image left, from strong emotions. We have experienced that, in my world. We say that it leaves an impression in the Force. We can feel it, years and years later.” Not for the first time, Siri wished she still had access to resources as she did like on Coruscant. She could have helped Georgie with what she needed. “What sort of equipment? Is it something you can obtain here?”
“Alright,” if Siri was happy with what she had, then Georgie couldn’t push it either. It was something the two of them ought to discuss. It was kind of nice though, to do something as normal as discussing another’s love life. It was something she hadn’t been able to do in some time. “Just, maybe ask him.” It was one thing to be happy, another to just assume the other party didn’t want anything to do with it all.
“That does sound interesting. Like I said, maybe I’ll make it a topic. Other supernatural events fascinate me” After all if one thing was true, others could be as well. The dead woman had cracked the door, then Jon had opened it. There were lots of things that could, and would hurt people but humanity always liked to try and understand. “Oh yeah that’s easy. Microphone, some recording equipment,, laptop to edit everything. I mean you could make it fancy and get a recording studio too but the problem isn’t all that, it’s the costs. Dayjob first, podcast once I’m more on my feet.”
“Ask him? That’s going too far.” Siri grinned, before sipping her tea. Her first inclination was to say, there’s plenty of time but she knew full well that wasn’t the case. Hadn’t she thought the same thing, before they faced Magus? And there was no guarantee they would be here long. She could find herself back on that ship. Or she could be here, and one day he disappears.
Leaving that be for now, Siri looked up with interest. “What are you doing for work? I wondered about that, how difficult it might be for those who came here to find a new means. Especially if they come from somewhere with different technology.” She would have offered to pilot a ship, if they’d had any. “Flying is one of my best skills, but..” She cast a rueful look at the sky, visible through the window. “Not many things in the air around here.”
She was reasonably sure Siri was teasing so she just smiled back before focusing on the other question. “I used to work in Communications.” then she realized that Siri might not know what that was. “Basically I did Public Relations for a company. I was fortunate enough though that I only had to work part time, my podcast was doing well enough for that. So I should be able to pick something up relatively quick. One of the others said the hospital he works in might be looking for someone with my qualifications so I’ll put in a resume there and hope they don’t need references.”
It would be tricky to find something if she was in Siri’s shoes though. “Yeah that sounds...complicated. I’m sure the people here will be willing to help you though. They seem good at that. We’re all in this together.”
Nodding, Siri replied, “Communications does mean something different where I come from, but I know about public relations. We had a whole class on it at the Temple.” She smiled, thinking back. “Nature of our work, really. We were supposed to mitigate a disturbance if we traveled somewhere, not make it worse. Let’s just say not everyone did well in that class.” Funny how being here, explaining everything to a stranger who had no frame of reference, cause Siri to look back on her early years. Had she been appreciative enough of what she had been taught? “It’s a job that requires some finesse. You must be a lot more patient than many I know.”
The thought of them being all together made her smile. A good people, overall. “Perhaps I could build a ship.” she ventured, amused. “Obviously, we wouldn’t be able to reach the atmosphere, just perhaps fly over the island itself, but at least there would be the thrill of getting into the air. I wonder if they even have speeders here.” She chuckled. “Did you fly at all, back at your home?”
It sounded like a useful class to teach a bunch of people that were being thrown at volatile places and people. Then again, Georgie was brought once more to the memory she had of the movies. It hadn’t seemed like the class had been taught much, or even retained. Georgie chuckled though, “no, not really patient. People tire me, really because a lot of what I have to smooth over is people being people, and stubbornness on both sides.” She sighed, “And sometimes companies do things that you can’t justify personally, but your job requires you do. You try. Or look for place that at least shares some of your morals.”
Georgie blinked at that, unsure how that would work. “I’m sure you could.” she shook her head, “we don’t have what you’re talking about. Planes are the best we’ve got and I’ve never flown. It’s just sitting long hours in a tube filled with people. I could think of better things to do.”
“Oh, now that sounds like the Council,” Siri lamented, making a face. “As of late, we were more about appeasing others, rather than helping peace. Mostly governments of our allies in the war.” She shook her head slightly at the brief sour taste that brought to her. “I wish I could say most species are at least compassionate, but too often creatures are only looking out for themselves, at the expense of even their neighbors. Oftentimes, it’s desperation, which is something we can address. Other times, just greed. I cannot help with that.” She understood where Georgie was coming from there, and wished her endless luck for it.
“Yea, if that’s all it is for you, I could see why it’s unappealing.” Siri had to laugh a little. “Being a passenger, or worse, cargo, isn’t nearly as much fun. You might be right, the components may not be available, but I won’t know unless I try. And frankly, the work itself is often as enjoyable. Do you have any hobbies like that?”
Georgie figured it was best to skirt away from politics. She had plenty of opinions, but no real facts. Instead she focused on the last question. “Nothing like that, I don’t really do fixing things. I read though, watch movies. Normal everyday stuff. It’s probably a bit boring.”
“What about clothes shopping?” Siri finished her tea, and held out the empty cup in a small salute. “You did promise…”
“Yes, we can do that.” Grinning Georgie went and paid, as she’d promised before leading Siri off to find some new things.