A Ton of Bricks [zett]

[Mara]

(((Heh, this thread isn’t going the way I envisioned it… but then again, that’s the fun of it, right? ;p
Also, apologies for length of this post. I got carried away…)))


For the first time since this girl had invaded his privacy he actually saw a change of emotion on her face and in her body language, and it heartened him. The hopeful idealism laced with determination had bottomed out. Perhaps he had finally gotten through to the kid and made her realize her mistake in running away from home and following an impossible and imagined dream. Now he could help her get back to her mother where a child her age belonged, settle things once and for all, and get back to leading his own, solo, existence the way he preferred it.

But the girl wasn’t finished; her fierce stubbornness in convincing Ean about her parentage continued without slowing. He wanted to shake his head in disbelief, again slightly admiring her for it but also getting upset in her perseverance on the matter, but kept his face neutral, unable to stop his hands from clenching at his sides. Her latest tactic was to explain about her currently dysfunctional family situation, trying to elicit sympathy from the Corellian, as if she were the first and only kid in the galaxy to not end up with a perfectly stable home life.

Ean wouldn’t be swayed, however. He could give her a few examples from the treasure trove of his own childhood of a family not getting along. Though none of them had stated such aloud in all the years, there had been a fairly obvious divide between he and his mother and his father and brothers. Awkwardness reigned whenever all five of them were in a room together, which was most of the time, considering the tightness of their apartment. The atmosphere around them was a tinderbox that could, and had, explode at any given moment.

Deep down he had known his father cared for him just as any father would have. But Ean had rarely seen the man show it. Tiron Stenner the lifelong factory worker had been so focused on his three eldest boys who did well in their studies and were making something of themselves, escaping from the yoke of one of Tyrena’s poor sectors. His pride in Tyrell, Hannon, and Egan had been unmistakable. And his brothers knew it, too, and never let him forget it, always taunting, berating. The only thing that had kept him from pummeling the trio to a pulp had been his mother’s presence.

Heleen Stenner—the one bright spot in Ean’s life. She had been the only one who had believed in him, seen his potential. Even while he was floundering in school and getting into fights. His mother had sparked and nurtured his love for cooking, the one skill he was any good at. They had spent afternoons together in the tiny kitchen, laughing and making meals. And when he had gotten expelled from school after one too many altercations, he had continued with his cooking, helping out especially after his mother had gotten sick, and ignoring his brothers’ jibes.

She had passed soon after, leaving a gaping hole in his heart. And leaving him alone with his father once his brothers had gone off to university and careers. Despite any past friction, he and Tiron had gradually come to an understanding of sorts, though their relationship remained shaky at times. Their love of Heleen had brought them closer. They had been able to converse amicably enough with each other. And when his father had succumbed to death himself only a few months prior, Ean had come back to his childhood home to mourn another emptiness.

No matter how dysfunctional it had been at times, he never would have considered deserting his family, running away from home as this girl had just described to him. Ean found it inconceivable. Family was important to him, one of the greatest gifts in life; friends could be great allies, but no one understood and loved one like blood. It kind of disgusted him that the child standing in front of him would just give up so easily on people who must care for her and probably were worried sick about her, wondering where she had gone.

A glance from the girl to the darkening sky hanging above the spaceport spurred him into action. He set his jaw in determination of his plan and focused his brown eyes on the girl; stubbornness was one of his traits as well. Ean wouldn’t rest until he had gotten this girl back home and reunited with her family. Jerking his head towards the inside of his ship, he spoke, “Come on.” The Corellian knew it wouldn’t be hard to get the girl to follow him; she had, after all, been trying to get on board since she had arrived in front of him.

Turning around, he led her into the Hope, his strides long as he took the corner towards the cockpit. “I’m gonna let you use the comm here to call your mother and let her know where you are and that you’re okay.” Once there, Ean leaned into the space and pointed out the right buttons to the girl. He indicated the pilot’s seat for her use, adding, “And then you’re going to arrange for a way back home,” before he took a couple steps back out of the cockpit to wait and give her the illusion of privacy. All the while, his voice had been commanding but not unkind.

[Adobi-Wan Kenobi]

Ryla stood there for a second, wondering exactly why he had a change of heart, but she took the opportunity to get inside quickly. She sighed a bit when she was told she was going to have to talk to her mother. Ryla hadn't any idea what to say if they picked up, and she was starting to think things as a little grim in way of chances of staying with Ean.

She powered the com unit on without thinking and then punched in the numbers with a bit of nervousness and frustration. She stood their hoping no one picked up the holo, or that someone else was now using it, this hope faded away a bit though when she recognized the man as her step father. He had to bottles of Corellian whiskey in his lap that where empty, and was working on his third, it was obvious he was drunk, and Ryla could almost smell the stench through the holo com.

Ryla stood there still not knowing what to say to the man. It was him who spoke first though, "Wha'? who's there?" He squinted a bit at the blue holo of Ryla, then sat back with a grim smile on his face, "Ahh, it's you... You've grown a bit, " He paused trying to find a name, he gave up after only a second or two, "What do ya hick-um... want?" Ryla thought about just shutting off the holo right then and there, but she would get absolutely nothing off of that, and perhaps even worse things then she wanted... So she grumbled before speaking, Is mom home? She asked, still nerved, but firm.

The man gave a unsettling laugh, "your mom aint been home in a year now kid, she walked out on me, no idea where she went off to..." Ryla's stomach almost sank, and she could now tell that her mom had finally noticed about this man what Ryla had known all along. Ryla wondered what it was exactly that caused Cass to leave the man, but she knew already that she would now have to fight even harder to stay with Ean, sense she knew she couldn't go back home to the man who was currently drunk.

Her stepfather, tossed the bottles off of himself and tried to talk once more to Ryla, instead of what ever he was trying to say, all he said was, "I hope the coppers finally find you little one, you caused a lot of trouble to me!" He then shut the holo off from his end and Ryla had a somewhat shocked look on her face, she had never seen him get quite this bad, she thought. Not to her at least, perhaps it was just him controlling his temper as a show for her mother, but still it shocked her. Ryla sighed before glancing up at Ean, she wasn't quite sure what he would say next, but Ryla wasn't going to drop out of this race yet, she was gonna at least make sure he knew She belonged to him... Somehow...

[Mara]

Ean had watched and listened to the entire exchange between the girl and the man he assumed was her father, or stepfather, depending on whether he believed her story. Out of sight of the comm’s holoprojector, he hadn’t seen the man’s face, just a bluish glow from the device filtering out of the cockpit. However, there had been no mistaking that the man had been drunk when he had answered the call. But without enough evidence, it was entirely possible that the man’s drinking was a rare occasion, not a problem. Or perhaps a result of his family falling apart, which Ean couldn’t blame him for. If he had lost his wife and child in a little over a year’s time, he’d be a mess,too.

The big man, from the few facts that he had gathered so far, had also come to the conclusion that the girl’s mother’s leaving was a result of the girl herself leaving. Her child had disappeared, and she had probably been a wreck, worried sick about her. And eventually, unable to sit at home any longer, she had taken off herself to find her daughter and bring her home. Or maybe she had just had a mental break from all the stress and wasn’t right in the head. Ean thought the chances of her deserting in order to get out of an abusive relationship, as the girl had insinuated, were slim. If that had been the case, the woman—if it were indeed the Cassie he had known—wouldn’t have suffered the fool and would have left years ago with her daughter in tow.

He stepped back into the cockpit where the girl was looking back at him after her father/stepfather had ended the call abruptly. There was defeat in her eyes, perhaps some sadness and confusion. Though it was obvious to him that her running away had set her family’s demise into motion, this child wasn’t able to even consider the possibility. She had wanted to believe in her dream scenario of her ‘real’ family so badly that the ramifications of her actions had never entered her mind. How her leaving her father and mother behind would affect them. It was a little pathetic and sad, but he did understand that she was still a kid and prone to delusions. All he could do was try to fix things as best as he could.

“Well, kid, seems like your little adventure has hurt the people who love you. Your father is drinking to get over the pain. And your mother… she misses you so much she just left. Maybe even to go looking for you. Time to get you home to your family, don’t you think?” His tone was neutral, not wanting to make the situation any worse. “Maybe next time you’ll think about the consequences before you break their hearts again. Listen, family is important; no one else cares for you like your blood. I know you’re young, and it may not seem like it, but they do, I promise. You’ll figure it out when you’re older, hopefully not before it’s too late to matter.” The hardened Corellian truly believed his words, and a little emotion had crept into his voice, thinking of his own parents.

Slipping past the girl, Ean slid into the copilot’s seat and switched control of the comm to his station. He turned off the holoprojector, wanting to just stick with audio for the time being. No need for the girl’s father to see his face; he didn’t want to cause any unnecessary trouble or give him the wrong idea about his daughter’s situation. “Let’s see if I can't smooth things over with your father…” Pressing a button that would call the last frequency set into the comm, he sat back and waited for the man at the other end to answer. Hopefully they could sort out any issues like civilized men, and the girl would be soon on her way home with any luck.

When the holo of the girl’s father finally materialized in front of him, a little 4-inch image of a man looking a little worse for wear, he gathered himself and found his most professional tone. Since the man at the other end of the connection couldn’t see him, it was best for him to break the ice politely. “Hello, sir. I'm sorry for the bother, but I have your daughter here—you just spoke to her. And I was hoping I could be of some help, that we could make an deal for her return to you and your wife. I’m sorry to hear she left; I pray it's just a simple misunderstanding and that she comes back soon. Especially if she hears her daughter is coming home.” Ean bit his lip to stop himself from rambling on. He was treading in virgin territory here and wondered belatedly if he had gone with the wrong tactic. Whether he had made the wrong impression on this stranger.

[Adobi-Wan Kenobi]

Ryla sat there, and almost laughed when he said what he did about blood and family. After all she WAS sitting right in front of him and he still didn't seem to get that she had tried to say the same thing a moment ago.

Ryla almost responded to his point about her step father and his drinking; which he had been doing for a long time any way, but she held her tongue while Ean made the call.

Throughout Ean's speech Ryla remained quiet, then came the strange part, there was a long bit of silence on the other end, just static. Ryla became uneasy, it wasn't normal for him to go silent, maybe he had already shut his comm off, but Ryla was having a bad feeling about this odd silence.

Meanwhile, Ryla's step father was up and about the crummy, un-kept house, calling police via another terminal. He could barely be heard talking to someone else in the back ground of Ean and his message, But Ryla didn't hear him.

When he finally did return to the comm, he sounded different, still drunk, but more pleased. Pleased that things where possibly going his way. "Sure, bring her by the coordinates I'm sending you, do you mind..." a small pause while he cleared his muddled mind before speaking again.

Ryla's stomach sank, her mother was no longer home, yet she was going back, she couldn't quite bear the thought. She sat there and grumbled...

[Mara]

(((All right, as we discussed, we’ll start winding this thread down and get to the next part in Coronet City…
My reply feels a bit meh/awkward to me, but I guess it’s an awkward situation, haha. And I hopefully get the point across.)))


Glad that the man on the other side of the comm hadn’t seemed to take any offense at his words, Ean nodded to himself, relieved. Just with his offer of returning the girl home, he could hear a change in her father’s voice. The previous exchange with his daughter had been a bit gruff, but the big Corellian had attributed that to all the stress of the past couple years, his child leaving and then his wife running off. Now that the man realized he was beginning to reclaim his family again, he was understandably more upbeat. Hopefully they could resolve things quickly, and Ean would be able to get on with his schedule with just a short side trip.

“Oh, it’s no bother, sir. I’m happy to assist you,” he answered after logging in the coordinates the man had sent. He held back his surprise that they were from just over in Coronet City a few hours away, a place he hadn’t been to himself in over a decade. The closeness gave some conviction to Ean's earlier thought that perhaps the girl had been lying about traveling all over the galaxy looking for her supposed real father and had really just taken public transport out of the capital and into one of the few cities she knew the name of. Deserting a normally imperfect home life to chase a delusional dream of a better life.

Ean glanced over at his wrist chrono, saw that he hadn’t put it on in the rush of getting redressed, and then looked over at the console in front of him to check the time and do some slow calculations in his head. Though still only late evening, if they left now, they would arrive close to dawn at the girl’s home, if he had done the math right. Despite the man’s eagerness to get his daughter back, he should be able to keep until a more reasonable hour. Especially since the former bounty hunter wasn’t expecting his new Twi’lek pilot to show up until early the next morning and had no way of lifting off any earlier.

“I had already planned to depart here from Tyrena tomorrow morning, and it won’t be a problem at all for us to stop by your place on our way off planet. We should be there around mid-afternoon by my estimates. I hope you’ll be able to relax now and get some well-earned rest tonight, sir. ” Ean looked over to Ryla, sitting in the pilot’s seat, saw her glum expression, then turned back to the small holographic image of her father. He was sure she was just stuck in some pre-teen rebel stage and once home again, would settle down. “Again, thanks for your understanding in this matter. And I promise, your daughter will be quite safe with me until her return.”

[Adobi-Wan Kenobi]

Of course... You'll be paid for your efforts too. The man said in his slurred tone and speech, before the image of the drunk man dissolved in the fashion all holo grams did, but not before a untimely and slightly unnerving smile crossed the mans face.

Ryla sat there in her seat, still a little upset, and she could tell that her stepfather's random change of heart was an odd one, but she had made it to the point where she really didn't arguing was the answer, she would try a few other things though, she had not gone all this way for no reason, she was going to get to stay with Ean one way or another, going home wasn't even an option.

Ryla only span the chair a bit trying to get a better idea of what was next, but truthfully she was going to have a lot of work to do in order to get out of this one.

((OOC---also Meh, but like you said this one is winding down and Ryla has little else to do.))

[Mara]

(((A bit late here… sorry about that…
But anyway, I think we’re heading to a conclusion here--I'll probably do the next morning and takeoff in my next post… and then we can move to the next thread.)))


He nodded at the holographic image of the man before it winked out of existence. Money wasn’t necessary for his efforts, he knew. If he had wanted or expected credits for returning the girl home, Ean would have been up front about it and negotiated a price for the trouble. But as he saw it, this was just a favor, a gesture of goodwill, and a quick way to get rid of a nuisance before he left Corellia. At the very least, just a short side trip. However, the big man also wouldn’t shy away from any sort of payment when offered. No matter the size of the father’s reward, it would be very rude of him to pass on it, and he wanted this transaction to go smoothly.

Afterwards, the former bounty hunter found himself staring at the emptiness for a moment or two while he prepared himself for his next move. Letting out a breath, he realized he was relieved that the conversation with the girl’s father had gone so well. There had been no anger or false charges made against him—or really any mention at all—of how the man’s daughter had ended up with him in the first place. It had been somewhat refreshing to see someone so focused on reuniting his family. Perhaps if Ean hadn’t been so eager to dispose of the girl, he would have made a connection that maybe the dialogue with the man on the other end had gone too well and noticed a possible ulterior motive.

His mind made up, he finally turned his brown-eyed gaze back to the girl Ryla. “Well, we’d better find you a place to bunk for the night. Morning will come soon enough. I know you’d probably prefer getting home soon as possible, but this is the best option for all of us. This time tomorrow, you’ll be back with your father.” Ean stood up from the copilot’s chair and paused briefly before deciding to awkwardly pat the girl’s shoulder in what he hoped was a reassuring way, matching it with a smilei n the same manner. Then he cleared his throat and moved to exit the cockpit, indicating with his head that she should follow him. “Come on…”

Ean led her back through the ship, passing by the lounge and the closed hatch where everything had started, and into the living area of the Hope. One the way, he pointed out the galley, in case she got hungry, and the location of the refresher, before stopping in front of a door next to his own quarters. Luckily, one of the extra cabins was still made up from when the Zeltron Felze Zeng had been under his employ a few weeks prior. He was planning on putting his new pilot Jaren in there, but the girl could use it for just the one night since the Twi’lek wasn’t scheduled to arrive until the morning.

Triggering the door release, it slid open, and he gestured with an arm. “There you—uh, hold on a second.” Ean stopped the girl from entering; though the lights were off, he had spied a couple things that his former pilot had left behind in the room. Careful with his bare feet, he went into the cabin and picked up a few scattered items that would be, in his opinion, inappropriate for someone Ryla’s age. As well, as an afterthought, he fluffed the pillow and aired out the bedding on the cot. He stashed the questionable things in the closet and grabbed an extra blanket from it as he closed it.

Dropping the blanket on the bed, he crossed back to the door and looked back to Ryla. “Sorry. There you go. Uh, sweet dreams.” Unsure what else to say, he nodded to her and waited until she had gone in before heading to his own cabin. Once back inside, he leaned against the door and rolled his eyes up, letting himself relax and decompress a bit from the stressful last hour or two. He had averted a potential major disaster and also helped bring a father and daughter together again. All in all, not so bad for being rudely awakened. Ean stepped out of his trousers and slid back into his bed and sighed. Satisfied with his actions, he was quickly asleep; the morning would be there before he knew it.

[Adobi-Wan Kenobi]

Ryla's expression went completely flat, something was off, overly off, wrong perhaps. But Ean couldn't see that at the time, and Ryla wasn't about to give up, but still her approach had to be changed, perhaps things would change by morning, but for now she took the mans few quarks that he had toward Ryla into consideration for a moment. He was perhaps nervous, but she hardly cared as she followed him into the back of the ship somewhat without much reason.

She followed him to the room he was about to offer and even glanced at some of the things that he was trying to dispose of, she knew for the most part what they where, but at the same time didn't really care, she ignored the items and then when it was "Safe" would walk in and let the door shut behind her.

She tossed her back pack on the bed and then plopped down for a bit. She then did feel a bit hungry and walked away from the bed and peeked out the hall way before walking down to the Galley. Where she grabbed not only something to eat now, but for a little bit later and also as a way to re-stock her back pack that was currently empty.

She then went back to bed, eat for the first time all day, and fell asleep with one arm still dangling off the bed.

((OOC--- no prob Mara, you should no i don't ask for rushed posts XD))

[Mara]

FYI: drdrakethesnake has given me permission to use his character Jaren Nabala as an NPC.


(((I know, but I also don’t like to get too behind on things…
Anyway, this is my last post here. Up to you whether you want to get one more in with Ryla. Otherwise, I’ll see you in the new thread when I get it up…)))


Corellia’s sun had barely begun to peek above the horizon when Ean had already been up and dressed, preparing for the trip ahead. Not only for the brief detour over to Coronet City to bring the girl back home but also for the longer planned journey ahead to make good on an overdue promise. The big man had paused briefly beside the other cabin door but had been relatively sure that Ryla was still fast asleep, and so he had gone on about his morning chores. It wouldn’t have bothered him in the least if she stayed in there the whole way to her father across the planet. He could spend his time on more important things than worrying about the girl.

In the galley, he had whipped up a quick breakfast for himself, only making extra as an afterthought for his guest and his awaited pilot. Putting those to the side, he had eaten the somewhat homemade meal of local spiced nerf sausage and fried eggs of unknown origin while slowly scanning the Holonet on his datapad for news. But he had soon shut the device off; it seemed all the stories were about wars and disasters, and he hadn’t wanted to ruin the good mood he had woken up with. Plus, nothing the anchors and holojournalists had been talking about and discussing directly concerned him, and Ean preferred to keep it that way.

Taking his cup of caf with him, the big Corellian had strolled through his ship, making last-minute checks of everything. All of the supplies in the hold had appeared secure and all accounted for, arranged the way he had left them the night before. He had headed up to the cockpit then to make sure the Hope herself was in tiptop shape for the journey ahead. Sitting down, he had painstakingly worked through the console menus, eventually reassuring himself that her fuel levels were as they should be and that nothing else seemed to be out of place, as far as he could tell. All that was needed now was for his pilot, the red-skinned Twi’lek Jaren Nabala, to show up, and then he could start on what he hoped would be the next phase of his life.

Ean took in a deep breath and let it out before coming to his feet and making his way to the hatch to open it and release the ramp. He walked down out of the black freighter and stood a few meters away, admiring the last sunrise on Corellia he would see in quite some time. At the same time, his eyes kept glancing towards the spaceport entrance for a glimpse of his pilot’s arrival. A couple days previous, they had gone over the schedule, and the Twi’lek had promised to arrive on time. The big man hadn’t been so certain, but had given the red-skinned being the benefit of the doubt. For what he was being paid, this Jaren might find it worth his while to rise earlier and be prompt for this job.

The sun had slipped away from the horizon and had started making its way up in the sky when the Corellian spotted a familiar figure coming his way. His caf finished, he just stood there still holding the cup while he waited for Jaren to come into speaking distance. When the Twi’lek was close enough to the Hope and Ean, greetings and pleasantries were exchanged briefly. Then Ean explained to his pilot about the slight change of plans, that they would need to stop over in Coronet City first before departing the planet entirely as he had been first told. Jaren nodded his understanding and ambled into the ship with his pack of personal gear, something he had also been told to just store in the lounge for the time being until his cabin was freed up.

With one last look around himself, at the spaceport and the city of Tyrena on one side, Ean finally nodded to himself with satisfaction and went back up the ramp, closing and locking it behind him. He made his way into the cockpit where the red Twi’lek was already preparing for takeoff, warming up the engines and speaking to spaceport control. It wasn’t that Ean didn’t trust his pilot. The man’s reasoning was actually entirely academic; he wanted to watch and observe and learn. So absorbed in his process, Jaren didn’t even notice when his pseudo copilot sit down and strap in. Nor when Ean leaned over to use the inter-ship comm to warn Ryla that they were lifting off and that she should secure herself before he sat back to enjoy the ride.

A few minutes later, the Hope’s repulsors were engaged, and her landing struts tucked in as she hefted gracefully off the duracrete surface of her berth. Then she was soaring up away from the spaceport and Tyrena and into the sky towards the atmosphere but not reaching it, a black disc in a sea of clear blue and wispy white clouds. Soon enough, the modified Dynamic was leveling off and pointed towards her destination of Coronet City a few hours away and settling into her smooth sublight rumble, taking the three unlikely travel companions with her.

[to Eyes Wide Open…]

[Adobi-Wan Kenobi]

((OOC---i'll wait tell the next thread to post do this makes an END))