Drinking Off Duty {Mara}

[Val - Warning:Contains Sarcasm]

Dragging her feet somewhat, metallic clanks signalled her arrival. An armoured form of a Mandalorian soldier passed through the security door which offered a barrier between the luxury of the officer's room and the outside world, montrals projecting through her helmet grandly. After what had been a rather thorough and somewhat painful experience, the woman was feeling drained both emotionally and physically, and the fatigue was mirrored in her partner who followed immediately afterwards, her attire significantly less aggressive or imposing. Furthermore, she had a remarkable lack of weaponry adhered to her figure at that moment, compared to the Togruta who bore pistols, swords and an assault rifle. They both had their hidden daggers pressed within their boots of course - the human's adept hand-to-hand combat and the ex-Jedi's Force sensitivity.

The room itself was rather spacious, with plenty of tables littered across the floor to allow seating to those leaders who needed their well earned breaks. A long bar managed by a single droid spread across their left side as they entered, and the soft melody of gentle music was providing an ambiance for the pair to relax to now. Almost feeling her muscles loosen immediately upon receiving the enchanting sounds, the young eyes of the Togruta drew themselves around the room. The orbs took in the appealing lighting in many colours, and the well furnished seating arrangements that became an instant attraction to the aching legs and abused backside which did not appreciate the walk from the training rooms. Quickly indicating a desirable table in the corner, the nodded the human towards the imaginary line extrapolating from the tip of her armoured finger in that direction. The Captain would be getting drinks this round.

Splitting now from her sparring partner and future colleague, her overworked mind addressed itself wearily to the task at hand of deriving two drinks from the endless possibilities. Nothing too strong, but from what she could tell the human needed to loosen up, and that meant alcohol. Danee herself, however, needed to be woken up more, and that meant alcohol. The logical conclusion, she hence found, was to place the droid with her order of a pair of mildly alcoholic drinks for the pair of them, and an extra shot of something neon blue for herself. Downing the sour-tasting drink from its tiny glass, the offered her credits to the mechanical bartender and carried the tall glasses of golden fluid over to where her drinking buddy was currently awaiting her return over in the corner. Placing the glasses smoothly onto the table, her form smoothly slid between table and seat.

Nudging the human's glass towards it's intended recipient, the Togruta brought her own drink up and sipped lightly at the delicious beverage. Even with the armour on she could manage the delicate movements demanded of a lady, even offering some small swirling of her glass in the patient time it took for the human to begin her own consumption. Largely thanks to the Force and its guiding of her fine movements, of course. Not wanting to drag their conversations back to the training, which had fallen apart at the end, rather unfortunately, her mind raced to find an alternative topic of discussion.
"How did you join the Mandalorians then, might I ask?" It would be a matter of either being born into the culture, or being introduced to it, she imagined. It was hardly likely anyone else had such an odd arrival into the warrior culture as she herself had, but it was worth an investigation as the rimmed edge brushed her lips once again.

[Mara]

[... from Spec Ops HQ Training Areas]


Ambria was glad to leave the training areas of the Spec Ops HQ for another part of the base, specifically the officer's club. Even just entering the hallway she seemed to breath easier, though the air was all the same. Every step she had taken away from that room, that experience, made her feel better. She knew she wasn't completely healed--no, that wouldn't happen until she took the time to get over her loss--but at least it was a step forward. And the alcohol couldn't hurt either.

She followed right behind Captain Xoxin, the Togruta Mandalorian she had just sparred with exhaustively. Ambria was dressed down a fair bit more than her fellow soldier, dressed only in her light clothes from earlier: leggings, tank top, boots. There had been no need earlier in the day for armor, but the lieutenant supposed that she would have to dress the part more often if walking around the base, even off duty. But for now she was glad for the comfort of the well-worn clothes.

Taking a deep breath, closing her dark green eyes for a moment, total relaxation hit her. Only one thing could make it better, and she was about to remedy that. Ambria smiled as her companion indicated a table, registering that she would be getting the drinks. Nodding in appreciation, she settled herself at the table, crossing her legs, enjoying the comfort of the chair.

When the Togruta returned, the dark-skinned human immediately grasped for her tall glass and took a long draught of it. The liquid warmed her spirits, making her feel even better than she had just from leaving the training room. Ambria was still savoring her drink when she heard her companion ask her a question. She turned towards her, looking her in the face, contemplating her answer. It was rather odd to be asked, but the recollection made her smile a moment, remembering her childhood.

"Born and raised in a small farming village on Mandalore." Ambria took another sip from her drink, nodding at Xoxin. "And you... ? I don't believe I got your first name before." She smiled a little sheepishly.

[Val - Warning:Contains Sarcasm]

The woman could certainly hide her appetite for the more alcoholic of beverages well, and Danee had hardly considered the possibility of her being so eager to lift the liquid sunshine to her lips without hesitation. The Togruta continued swirling the fragile glass between her fingers slyly, running a gauntlet's fingertip against the clean vessel before taking another reserved drink. If it weren't for that extra shot she'd managed to annihilate at the counter, this drink would have been downed a long time ago and her finely toned Mandalorian butt would be back over at the counter getting another delicious pouring of delightful sin to rejoin the human company with. As it were, maintaining her authority figure was important to Danee, especially at that moment. She didn't know why - maybe something carried over from the match, maybe trying to prove something to Arcane or herself, but it was a haughty attitude that didn't usually suit her. Now was an exception, however, as she placed herself in the leadership role.

Ambria now talked of Mandalore and her own upbringings, and the Togruta was reminded dually of Mandalore. The man she had been in the presence of earlier that day - he had seemed a lot more imposing in person. Her memories of him were vivid and not as grand, but there was still something there that was greater than just the basic appearance. There was a meaning within the armour, a man beneath the mask, and a story behind the man. Mandalore was also a planet, though, she knew, and it was not one she had ever truly been to before. The homeworld of Mandalorian culture, she had intended to stroll around its magnificent environment once before and absorb just the purity of the place - a planet based around combat and survival. Oh how she would like to go there some time... maybe just to take in the surroundings and know what it was to be a true Mandalorian on the planet their heroes had once taken over and spread their influences from.

Snapping back up to the present now, though, she immediately realised that she hadn't actually responded to the human's next question. It was certainly a difficult question to answer - after all, how do you tell a Mandalorian warrior that you, their superior, used to be a Jedi, or at least in the Corps? Furthermore, the reason you were inducted into the Mandalorian culture was because you nearly killed some warriors and impressed them. It was just... It wasn't something that really tended to go down well when you were discussing your introduction to the group. Not as grand as someone who had trained in the lifestyle their entire life, after having been brought up by fathers who fought and sparred and became experts at what they did. Not as amazing as the pure-blood Mandalorians by a long shot. Stating that she was Force sensitive was a definite no, and now she was faced with the problem once again of having no response for the human. Gratefully bringing the alcohol to her suddenly parched lips, she cleared her throat.

"Captain Danee Xoxin. Togruta, in case you didn't notice." Her eyes flicked up to the montrals poking proudly through her helmet like a pair of spires. That was the easy part of her answer, for certain. "I was a teenager in a village medical centre when the Mandalorians attacked, and I took up weapons to fight them. I managed to hurt a few of them, but... they took me, essentially, and sort of made me an offer I couldn't refuse." It was true, though some information was clearly missing. Or at least clearly to her, and whether it was clearly missing to someone else was not something she could tell at the moment. Arcane was quick, but not as fast as the hand that brought the drink up to her lips once more to offer her the coveted thinking and consumption time that she missed back on Dxun where there was actually literally nothing to do besides training. She offered a smile to the woman, not knowing where to take the conversation now.

[Mara]

Curious, that she didn't ask any more about her time on Mandalora. But Ambria shrugged it off. Perhaps she just wanted to know where she was born, what heritage she was, if she was part of one of the 'big' clans. She had only asked how she had joined, not for her life story. Though, Ambria had a feeling she might be sharing that in the not so distant future if she had any refills on her drink.

She hoped her companion hadn't taken the question of her name as any degradation to her. Ambria couldn't remember whether she had gotten properly introduced to her back in the mess hall before the had decided to go on their now, she thought, infamous spar. The last name was familiar, obviously, but now she had a first name to go along with it. The Mandalorian, though a soldier, didn't want to call her 'Captain Xoxin' forever, especially not in casual situations. She nodded, without thinking, adding her own name. "Lieutenant Ambria Arcane."

Gratefully she turned her senses to her drink again to wipe away some of the embarrassment. And she had the rest of the Togruta's response to consider. Ambria nodded at her explanation. It was reasonable enough. The Mandalorians were well known in accepting others into their culture, whether or not they were born into it. She herself had had a couple friends back in her village that had been adopted into families there. Ambria didn't think of them as any less as anyone else there. But she didn't mention where. "Was that here on Concord Dawn?" Whether she was mainly just curious or the alcohol was helping, she wanted to know where the Togruta had grown up.

[Val - Warning:Contains Sarcasm]

Ambria Arcane. The name seemed to roll off the tongue rather easily and cleanly. And a lieutenant too. Certainly a rank she'd earned judging by her personality. The tip of a finger stroked around the rim of the glass, her lips resting on one edge and just slightly slipping from side to side against the smooth texture. The fumes of the drink beneath her nose passed into the nasal cavities and excited her slightly, quirking a smile to her pale lips. Maybe fighting with this Mandalorian in particular wouldn't be as boring as she'd expected it to be after all the time she had spent on Dxun around the same old people. Variety, certainly the spice of life.
"Well I wasn't always on Concord Dawn, I was brought here after the village I was in was raided." Another sip from the glass fueling the smile on her face and broadening it. "Kind of ironic, I always thought the Mandalorians hated Jedi."

She stopped, frozen in thought, dropping the smile and her gaze into the table beyond the glass immediately. She hadn't just said that had she? Had she? Really? Really!?
"I mean, with the way they were treating the Jedi when they attacked and all..." How exactly that logic worked based on what she she didn't know. It wasn't like the Jedi would be treated much different to other Mandalorian enemies. She was the only surviver, and that was because she fought back and nearly got herself killed. A pretty epic fail in retrospect, and it often made her think she should have died in most cases on that day. She drew her attention off to the side of the room to distract the conversation away from what would surely become a difficult conversation to weave her way out of, pressing the glass of alcohol away from her slightly. The droid had disappeared long ago to another side of the bar and the music had changed to something a little more upbeat, but even that couldn't deaden the pang of discomfort coursing through her tight legs.

Possible conversation scenarios floated through her mind before the most feasible one flashed into her mind and she attempted to return to answering the human's question based on her experience of Concord Dawn.
"So yeah, I was here on Concord for a while before they shipped me off for training on Dxun where I was pretty much ever since. I didn't really go off-world after that so I haven't actually experienced much of the galaxy, though I suppose Dxun was pretty much as diverse as I can imagine." Glad that she hadn't bothered to mention her exploits on Coruscant for a few years for certain 'training'. It would be a little too much to just outright claim she was a subject of Force training, or that she had been passed over for a master. She didn't know what would be more disgraceful to herself as the alcohol reunited with her lips once again.

[Mara]

Ambria nodded as Danee gave up a little more information. So she hadn't grown up on Concord Dawn either, coming to it later as she also had. However the woman also found it curious that she wouldn't name where the village was where she had grown up. If this had been a more formal occasion, Ambria might have been more willing to press the Togruta. But she didn't want to press her; it seemed there were bad memories behind the relocation. She knew Danee would tell her in her own time. It was common for some to be afraid of Mandalorians first off, thinking they were like all other mercenary types, until they realized they offered a better life.

She sipped from her glass again as she listened. The glass was halfway to her lips when she stopped briefly before finishing the motion. Had she said Jedi? And what had she meant by her offhanded comment? Had the Jedi raided her Mandalorian village? Was she understanding her story all wrong, that she had been Mando already by then? Despite how much she thought the Jedi were misguided herself, Ambria hadn't ever heard of them attacking a village, especially one made up of Mandalorians.

Thinking she had heard wrong and waiting for Danee to continue, she remained quiet, being careful to wipe the surprise from her face. Her explanation confirmed her thoughts, but the notion of the Jedi attacking was still a little hard for her to swallow. Something that made her take another long swallow of her drink. Perhaps it had been a misunderstanding on both parties' faults. Perhaps the young Togruta had been confused. If only she would mention where her village had been, which planet... Ambria was sure there would be some record. If Jedi had attacked Mandalorians, they would remember it.

Thinking Danee was reliving the trauma again as she looked away, Ambria started into her drink. Regretting her line of questioning, trying to think of something more lighthearted to talk about next. There were things in her own past she didn't really like talking about either, though she knew doing so would actually help heal her wounds. Maybe this Togruta before her was ready to heal, encouraged by the alcohol. If so, Ambria would do what she could to help her through it. The least she could do after her performance in their spar.

With the mention of Dxun, she nodded again. That must have been where she learned most of the toughness she had demonstrated so far, especially in the spar from earlier. Ambria had admired the way she kept on fighting, despite her injuries. Feeling she needed to respond, she offered up something, realizing afterwards it sounded rather lame, but she didn't know what else to say. Not wanting to bring up anything about Danee's village or the raid. "Never been to Dxun myself. But I've heard stories about its.... diversity." She smiled.

[Val - Warning:Contains Sarcasm]

Eyeing the other Mandalorian warily, Danee half wondered what she meant exactly by the tone she used in stating the diversity, though there was no further questions on the Jedi, which was good. There weren't even questions on her village, which was even better. She didn't feel like explaining how her history went just now, and frankly she didn't really think that this was the right time and place to speak of such things. Nowhere was really. Not any more at least. The galaxy was a dangerous place if you had a stupid mouth and alcohol. Luckily she'd been so vague and useless with her speaking that this human didn't seem to have picked up on anything. Humans were tricky, though. This much she knew, and it was a general rule for her not to throw a human as far as she could throw them. Granted, technically, she could probably throw one quite far, it wasn't likely to actually come down to physically carrying out the statement, which she was thankful for - especially after the spar.

Most of her drink had disappeared by now, and if she weren't already aware of her 'impressive' drinking habits she could have been looking around for the other figure siphoning off her liquified credits. As it were she simply sighed and wished the glass weren't as void as it currently was. Even if it was half full, or half empty, or whatever it was, that would be enough for at least another little while before she'd have to go off and reorder herself more to keep herself satisfied. Glancing up, she wondered how best to respond to this question once more, bringing the glass slowly to her lips to give her a reason for not answering, and praying that she could use the gained time to come up with some sort of response that would not result in her regretting her choice of words. As long as she didn't say Jedi she was pretty safe in most of the cases. The glass tipped forward slightly and the Togruta's lips began moving, smirkedly.

"Well Dxun is a rather wonderful place, especially in Mandalorian history. You have Onderon nearby, old Mandalorian families, new ones arriving, almost all kinds of alien species, and there's really no better place for survival training." Her mind wandered a little to the predatory animals that tended to roam around the outskirts of the Mandalorian camp, awaiting any of the soldiers to leave to repair the mechanical equipment that often failed. Individual soldiers posed easy targets for most of the dangerous monsters. "It's also where we launched the attack on Onderon all those years ago, and took the planet in a few hours. And probably the site of our most glorious battle against the Republic and the Jedi. We didn't win, but the kill:death ratio was far in our favour." She smiled, oblivious to the repeated slipup of her words once more, but it passed her memory as she recalled the things she had been taught of Dxun.

Most of it had been at a young age, having just arrived on the planet for the first time after joining the Mandalorians. A young girl, she had been afraid and unwilling to travel very far, even from the drop-off ship. Much of the world was unknown to her, and even the name of the moon was new. The archives of the Jedi had never truly contained much information on Dxun - or at least, nothing that she'd found easily accessible or worthy of reading. Not even when she had been on Iridonia had she found anything worth mentioning. Growing up in that jungle had been hard, and were it not for the constant stories about the glorious battles and everlasting honour that each Mandalorian that died on the planet had received, she would not have managed to remain as optimistic about actually getting off the planet some day as she had. Granted, that day came far later than she had ever actually imagined, she embraced it nonetheless as though it were the normal and expected day for her departure. How she had been glad to see that inspirational, and yet miserable world disappear into hyperspace. Her eyes locked contact with Ambria's for a few seconds before she drew her senses together once more and offered a little more to the conversation.
"Dxun was never my home, really. As much as I say it is, and as much as it was where I resided throughout my years of learning the Mandalorian culture, I could never say that I'd return there of choice."

[Mara]

She delved back into her drink then, waiting for her companion to respond. Ambria realized there was a lot more empty air in her glass than liquid and wondered when she had downed it all. To compensate she took a small sip of the warm beverage and smiled a little. The smile disappeared, though, when she thought about their conversation so far. Both of them seemed to be acting a little wary. Ambria knew what she herself was hiding, but wasn't sure what Danee was keeping from her. Not that it was any business of hers...

No, the dark-skinned woman was just feeling a little down in the fact that she had been trying to get to know this fellow soldier better in an atmosphere that didn't involve fists and was doing a poor job of it. They both were dancing around questions, giving vague answers. They were acting like strangers in a bar, she supposed. Which wasn't too far from the actual truth, surmised Ambria. Something she resolved to change, if she could. If they were to go into battle together in the next couple days, she would rather be able to count Danee as a friend, not a strange soldier.

Thankfully the Togruta spoke again, and she turned away from her drink, a glass with only a few drops left. Even though she paused, Ambria let her go on, feeling no need to interrupt with comments, thinking perhaps the other woman would reveal something more of her past, giving her the in she needed to talk about her own. Something that the alcohol could make easier. Though the pain would remain always, talking about her loss could ease it.

Ambria smiled as the other did, noticeably going silent for a longer time. She assumed the Togruta was reliving a memory and gave her the time to do it. Her emerald eyes glanced around the room, seeing the club had filled up a bit. Wondering how she might broach the subject of her breakdown during their spar, try to explain why she had broken into a fit of sobs in the middle of it.

She looked back as Danee spoke again, and Ambria smiled again. There was understanding in her green eyes. She had missed Mandalore sometimes, more so when she was alone in her quarters on Concord Dawn after a particularly bad day of training. It was only natural for the Togruta to miss her original home, despite being on Dxun for so long. Ambria broached a question, "Where was your home?"

[Val - Warning:Contains Sarcasm]

Interesting, indeed, that the human would ask such a question. Arcane seemed to have a way with comversations, or interrogations, whichever was appropriate - she knew how to ask the right questions, which was always a bonus when trying to acheive information. Not that Danee felt interrogated at the moment, or at least not as much as she could possibly be feeling. It was nice to have someone actually interested in her, even if it was only for show. She didn't know whether it was a genuine conversation she was experiencing, but she didn't care too much. All she knew was that she had been asked a question, but there was no answer coming from the Togruta's lips, and she noticed immediately that she must appear incredibly rude.

"My home?" She asked, surprising herself with the amount of questioning tone within the reflection of Ambria's words. "My home..." She rephrased, returning to a more answering format, "I suppose the Mandalorians are technically my home. But I can't imagine a place I've felt at home in for a long time. Dxun was where I resided, but I'd never say I put my sign over the door." She sighed, thinking back to the hellish place of humid jungles and rampant beasts. There was only so much she could take, and all those years on the moon had tried her patience to the extremes of what she was willing to handle. She never wanted to go back. Even the Jedi had been more favourable than that place.

Luckily she didn't actually voice these opinions, and she doubled the insurance by forcing her lips back around the glass that looked disappointingly empty. She never appreciated the revelation that her alcohol was nearing its end, and this - she supposed - meant that another round would soon be required. But first her own question for the woman before her, but what was there to ask? Conversations worked well with a logical flow, but there was so little she could go with at that moment. Wracking her thoughts a moment, she immediately realised what she could ask instead.
"I don't suppose you'd call anywhere in particular home then would you?"

[Mara]

Ambria nodded in understanding. She had meant to ask about where the Togruta was born, but realized now that the question probably wouldn't hold any meaning for Danee. If she had been really young during the raid, she probably wouldn't have a memory of the planet or her biological family. Dxun, for her, was as close as home could get. And then there were the Mandalorians, another sense of family. Ambria knew that she considered the collective group her home and family. Anyone under the banner of Mandalore she would commit herself to. She needed no blood ties.

Danee's question broke her out of her reverie. Despite the innocence she knew was behind it, Ambria knew it was a loaded question for her. Those mere words brought up a lot of unbidden memories for her. But she shoved those emotions away, realizing that now she could have her chance to begin to explain about what happened to her earlier during their spar.

If she had been asked a few years ago, even a month earlier, she would have said whichever barracks she resided in at the moment. Though she had been born and raised most of her life on Mandalore, the army was her home now. But she didn't think that the soldier sitting across from her wanted such an easy and partially cheesy answer. Danee had been honest with her about her bringing up, with the raid and the being brought to Dxun, being adopted into the Mandalorian culture. Ambria knew she had to try honesty as well.

Pushing her glass to the side, she looked the Togruta in the eyes. She knew this would be hard for her, but she had to start somewhere. "As I said earlier, I grew up on Mandalore. That's where my whole family still is. But I wouldn't consider it home anymore. Home for me... it's wherever I lay my head at night. Wherever I am surrounded by other soldiers. That's where I feel I belong now."