Socializing is for Jedi Too (Charlie)

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sherasti Rin was kneeling in one of the many courtyards of the Jedi Temple, doing her best to enjoy the quiet and avoid the areas of activity. This was the 'alone time' for the Togruta Jedi Knight, a blessed time of silence and stillness in which she could be alone with her thoughts. Or lack thereof. Sometimes it was nice to simply have her mind clear, free from distractions. That was precisely what she was enjoying so much right now.

The peaceful smile on her rust-colored face and her subtly-colored full lips said that much. From the long white skirt that hid her legs and feet from view all the way up to her tall, curving montrals, she was the very picture of serenity. That was always Sherasti while meditating in blissful silence.

She did have a lot to think about now. More than she'd ever had before to be honest. She'd managed trade negotiations before, mediated disputes, and even helped to provide a little healing for a lost soul, but none of that was quite like being responsible for another person. Her thoughts were on her Padawan, Xell Rayner. The human teenager was just a few years younger than she was, and had been removed from his previous rather-unstable master and placed into her care. He was a responsibility for her, and a proof that the Masters had high confidence in her abilities. If they hadn't, why would she have been assigned him?

Having a Padawan was a new and thrilling experience. She could already feel a special connection to him. Often times even without making a conscious effort she could feel his emotions, and sometimes even detect his thoughts. She could never quite tell whether that was a special bond with Xell, her own telepathic prowess growing, or something else entirely.

Regardless, it was good to take her mind off that once in a while and simply relax. Silence was the perfect opportunity for that.

She could the sounds of someone approaching, and feeling their presence well before they were near her. She could even tell telepathically they were perfectly friendly, though that was hardly a surprise given their location in the Jedi Temple.

Sherasti made a point of being gracious, even if her silence was interrupted. Her hands rose from her lap, and met each other palm to palm in a gesture of peace, a formalized greeting.

"Hello."

[Charlie Sharper]

It was another quiet day on Coruscant, well, at least by Coruscanti standards. Tem's day had started as it always did with his normal training regiment. After weight training he made his usual jog around the Temple. It was a roughly four kilometer run and it was both a calming ritual and a tradition that started roughly a decade earlier by his master Heldo Felnar to which he had practiced to this day. Even when the pair relocated to Dantooine they practiced a similar ritual. He would often think during this time, it helped him calm his mind and heart but every so often it would have the opposite effect, causing his mind to race. This usually only happened when he was under stress or distracted by the goings on in his life, though. Today was one of those times, and he was having significant trouble calming himself or even keeping his mind from racing.

It was understandable though, Tem had recently taken on a padawan, Alyica Zel, and was in the process of training her. He was more then a little nervous of the whole situation though, he had never been much of a teacher to the younglings and had little experience with such things, but the council had picked him and had assured him of their belief in his ability to train her in the Jedi arts. He just had to believe in himself, there was a first time for everything after all. He would just have to do his best and, force willing, everything would turn out fine.

Tem finished his run and proceeded to his room, his mind still slightly shaken from the stress. After bathing, he tried for half an hour to meditate with little success, deciding that maybe some more fresh air might help the process. He made his way toward the courtyards, moving though the various halls of the Temple, stopping every so often to find that most of the courtyards were busy with activity, young padawans and younglings practicing lightsaber forms or being instructed on the nature of the force. He finally found one that was seemingly vacant, a lone Jedi meditating in the center of the courtyard. He decided it was the best he would find and proceeded toward the Togruta Jedi meditating.

"Hello." She said in greeting. "Hello." Tem bowed to her and then looked up through his goggles at her. From what he knew of Togruta, he guessed she was near to his age and he noticed she wore a Togruta sash in addition to her Jedi robes. "I didn't mean to bother, I've just been having trouble meditating indoors and thought some fresh air might help." He didn't particularly know this Jedi, though he recognized her from about the Temple and thought it might be an opportunity to make a new friend.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"I didn't mean to bother, I've just been having trouble meditating indoors and thought some fresh air might help."

Sherasti smiled warmly, her usual demeanor. Kindness. Of course he didn't mean to bother, who ever did at the Temple? There was just limited space and many people, that inherently meant there'd be some sharing. It was just part of being a Jedi. Besides, they were all like family. It was hardly an imposition.

"You're welcome to meditate with me. And by the way, my name is Sherasti Rin."

The Togruta Jedi bowed her head, dipping her montrals slightly. It was one of her staple signs of a respectful greeting, in much the same way clasping her hands together was one of peace. Despite being born on Abregado-rae instead of Shili, she had very Togruta mannerisms. And she also had a lovely accent.

Perhaps if she'd been taken in by the Order early in life, when she was just a baby, then her accent wouldn't have been so distinct. As it was, she'd been taken in just a few months shy of her sixth birthday. She'd picked up the accent from her father, when he'd been around with her in the evenings done with his work for the day. He'd sing her lullabies about the red and white turu grass, about the canopy forests. About all the things they didn't have in the old town of the capital city.

And then she'd been taken into the Jedi. She was just old enough to understand she was going away, and she hadn't wanted to leave her father. But he'd scooped her up in a bear hug and told her everything would be okay. He was right. Everything had been okay.

She was with a large family now. And even though she didn't know this pale Jedi wearing goggles, he was very much her brother.

"I don't know if I've seen you around before, what's your name?"

[Charlie Sharper]

Tem thought for a moment, it wasn't uncommon for Jedi not to know each other, the Temple was a big place, let alone that there were all the enclaves. He thought about it for a second as he walked over toward her. "It could be that up until four years ago I was living in the Dantooine Enclave. My name is Tem Farelle." He thought of his time there, they were peaceful days and most of the Jedi there knew one and other. Well, as much as you could considering the coming and goings of most Jedi, which allowed for ample room to miss people completely, but at least there was less of it then here on Coruscant.

He sat down next to her, sitting down with his legs crossed. He then closed his eyes and relaxed himself. "Have you ever been to Dantooine?" He asked while keeping his eyes closed, he allowed the force to flow through him and he began to see around him. It was always interesting to see thought the force, it was in many ways seeing everything, but nothing at the same time. He could almost feel the room around him, but nothing was particularly in focus until he gave attention to it. Heldo had told him it was more of an extension of his sense abilities, thus making it more of an awareness then actual sight.

It was a little overwhelming here on Coruscant though, so much was going on at any moment that it sometimes gave him a bit of a headache to use force sight. He couldn't imagine if he had to rely on it to see all the time like most Miraluka, Mirian often complained about it when they were on Coruscant. -Mirian...- Thought Tem for a moment before pushing away the worry he felt for her.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"It could be that up until four years ago I was living in the Dantooine Enclave. My name is Tem Farelle."

That would explain it. Sherasti had never seen the rolling hills and the grasslands of Dantooine before, she'd only had a brief window of time between being knighted and the peaceful planet falling victim to the Sith. Too short a time to have seen it. She'd never seen Rhen Var before it had fallen too.

She had to admit the prospect of the war baffled her. The Jedi weren't soldiers at all, but they had been attacked in not one, but two locations. It seemed as if war had found them whether or not they liked it. Yet they weren't at war or off fighting.

But if that changed, what was her place? She was very much a pacifist, and the idea of fighting a war, of taking a life? It was... antithetical to her. She could never see herself doing that, but she also couldn't see herself simply sitting it all out. There had to be some way she could serve the Order in the event of war, she just didn't know what it was yet.

"Have you ever been to Dantooine?"

Sherasti perked up again, she'd lost herself in thought a little. She had a tendency to do that, and it often gave the incorrect assumption she wasn't paying attention. Her hearing and her senses were quite keen though, and if something was being said she always heard it clearly.

"No, I haven't. But I hear it's lovely."

The Togruta Jedi lowered herself back onto her heels, resting her weight there comfortably instead of on her knees. It was a sign of relaxing, and it also diminished her considerable height, though she still loomed over others at six foot, even without the montrals included in the height. In some shorter doorways she had to dip her head.

She had the feeling this was going to be more of a social call than quiet meditation. She might as well embrace it.

"I've always been here on Coruscant, since I was a little girl. Its home for me, even though I still love Shili very much."

[Charlie Sharper]

"No, I haven't. But I hear it's lovely." Tem smiled thinking of his old home. "It is, the rolling hills and grassy plains, it was a very calming place for me. My master, Heldo, believed it would allow me to find a peaceful center there...He was right." His smile faded slightly at the thought of his old master, but he pushed the anguish away from his mind, calming himself again.

He had been putting off his visit to Heldo lately, after the fall of Dantooine and the possible reemergence of the Sith, Tem felt like there was little good news to tell his former master. The healing process was one that was taxing enough, and Tem didn't want to add any possible stress that could arise from hearing that the Galaxy was at war again...But he would have to see him eventually, Tem told himself, He deserves to know what's happening in a world he is no longer able to take part in.

"I've always been here on Coruscant, since I'm a little girl. Its home for me, even though I still love Shili very much." Tem thought back to his birthplace of Nadiem. He remembered it in shades and brief images, though most Jedi never knew the place they were born, as many were taken before a memory could be made. "Do you remember much from Shili?" Tem asked, not wanting to pry but just out of genuine curiosity. The feeling of intrusion was realized so Tem decided to try and off set it. "I was taken to be trained when I was four years old, I do remember a little of my birthplace and my parents."

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"It is, the rolling hills and grassy plains, it was a very calming place for me. My master, Heldo, believed it would allow me to find a peaceful center there...He was right."

It did sound lovely. And she was certain she'd get the chance to see it some day. The Sith wouldn't win this war, she was certain. The Light would prevail, and the Jedi would return to Dantooine. They'd rebuild and they'd survive, as they always had. Good always won in the end.

It only took a single light to hold off the darkness after all.

She was a fan of nature. It was incredibly soothing and calming to be immersed in it, to feel grass or sun-baked earth beneath her bare feet, to feel the warmth of afternoon light on her rusty skin... Yes. She would like Dantooine, she was certain of that. Every planet had its own special beauty and value, if you looked hard enough for it. And some planets had more obvious beauty to them, Dantooine she'd heard was one of those.

It was certainly different than Coruscant. With her own inclination towards all things green and growing it was quite surprising that she did like Coruscant as much as she did.

"Do you remember much from Shili? I was taken to be trained when I was four years old, I do remember a little of my birthplace and my parents."

"Well, I'm not actually from Shili. I was born on Abregado-rae. I wasn't old enough to remember everything, but I do remember a lot of it. I was brought in when I was five. I was old enough to know I was leaving behind my father. It was sad, but he told me everything would be all right. And it was."

She thought back to what she knew. Her father worked in some kind of industry, and her mother had been a healer, only she'd died in childbirth. Sherasti had missed out on the traditional childhood of so many. But then again, what Jedi hadn't? It was one of the things that set them apart.

"But Shili is an adopted home. It's soothing to be there, and it just feels right, like I'd been waiting my entire life to go there."