Saga - PT But One Hour Mine - OCs

The thing Mistress_Renata said...

...is exactly how I feel about it. It's so, so, so very Remarque. It's so Arch of Triumph in its own little subtle way.

Anyway, catching up because I KNOW you won't fall behind your schedule for me or fall behind any kind of a schedule for anybody. Let's check out the steamy rawr chapter and the scary one after it.

Chapter 3

On the other hand, there's so much fairy-tale surrealism here. Being married to a dead man and the whole poetic approach to those who roll under the waves, yet the inability of those on the land to let go. And curiously, Mirany has the word "land" in her last name, and Kash's last name is reminiscent of the very core of most worlds - the iron. At this point, I don't think that this is "sometimes a X is just a X" type of a thing. You just HAD to work this in, even subconsciously.

Loved reading about your Mehrine fanon. Every single bit of it.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA. <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. <3 <3 <3


Chapter 4

Love it how the name is so Watership Down, for some reason.

And I am confused...is Noenni betraying Mirany, and is this Kash's lightsaber crystal?

I bet the caves will be important later in the story. And that, from this point, Mirany can't turn back, not even if she wants to.

 

Thank you for your response! I appreciate it. The Empire is clamping down on a rather obstinate city, and if the people of Mehr aren’t careful they will become a horrible warning to other cities. The new commander will not tolerate any insubordination.

Thank you! Lol. Mirany is a bit headstrong, but she’s Mehrine. Eh, what can you do? But he really, really needs to level with her, and she needs to tell him about her secrets too. Love isn’t enough to get you through the dark days. You need trust, too, and that comes from opening up all your secrets to the one you love.

Thank you, that was exactly what I was going for. The Empire is oozing its way into their lives and they don’t see the danger.

Thank you for your thoughtful response. You’re right, the Empire’s slowly increasing the pressure on these people, so carefully that they aren’t really aware of the changes. But each day brings a new oppression. Kash wants to tell her, he knows he needs to tell her, but he is also afraid that he might scare her away. However, he knows she’s hiding something from him, too. (The “hey, guess what, I’m actually married” is just one of her little secrets.)

Well, we’ve already seen this same crystal in Code Breaker. So yes, it’s from Ilum.

Thank you! I’m glad you are liking this. Even if romance is not your cup of tea, I hope you won’t get too tired of this. Kash and Mirany’s relationship has a physical side but they keep that canoodling off screen, so don’t worry about that. Hope you come back for more. You are always welcome here.

Thank you! I’m trying to keep the two stories (this and Code Breaker) in line with each other so that things that unfold in one don’t preempt the inclusion of the event in the other.

Spoiler

and you know that I am struggling with the diary, so that’s by necessity slowing down the pace of this fic.

But thank you so much for such high praise. I am trying to give it a kind of rich, dreamy feel so as to contrast with the brutality of the Imperial presence. Thanks for the encouragement.

Yep, magical realism and the Handsomest Drowned Man in the World. I think Mirany loved Adan, but she was so young and when he died she didn’t want to give up the idea that she had cultivated, the future she had imagined for them, even when it was obvious that he was never coming home. She kind of ossified.
As for the names, I do kind of think there might be a subconscious effect there. Kash is like iron; he is stronger than you think but still something earthy and unpretentious. Mirany, as much as she is linked to the sea, is also most definitely a creature of the land.

Spoiler

As for Kash’s first name – I was writing the original short story that introduces these characters, I had Mirany’s name (that came quickly) but I couldn’t think of the man’s name. Well, the television was on and it was showing the movie Walk the Line. So Kash it was. Just not Johnny Kash.

Thanks for the compliment about the fanon. I’ll probably add more as I go along.

I have to confess I have not read Watership Down. I will put it on my list for my summer reading. Since Noenni’s dad is Falleen, I wanted her last name to be more exotic (and have an X in it because everybody from Falleen has an X in their name, doncha know). Noenni is another sister to Mirany so she is not betraying her friend. And as for the nature of the crystal, the next chapter tells you the answer. Oh? The caves are a Chekhov’s gun? Um, well, yeah. One of the perks of being a native is that you know where all the good hiding places are. And no, there's no turning back now: Mirany has fallen hard for Kash. She has already lost one love in her life, and she had given up the idea of ever having another, but she has found a connection with Kash unlike any other she could have imagined.

 

Thank you so much for the nominations that this story received: Best Romance, Best Original Character (Kash Ferros). I appreciate it very much, and I am honored that this work was nominated.


Chapter 5.

The old woman gestured for Mirany to enter. “Come, child. Sit. What do you wish to know?”

Mirany stepped cautiously into the salon. It was decorated in a way that appealed to the tourists; with thick drapes that kept out the dull sunlight, heavy furniture, and mysterious artwork. At least the heady incense was absent, although that touch would come back with the seasonal visitors. Even still, the room was dark, and, like all darkness, Mirany distrusted it. Already she could see the nebulous shifting of shadows in the corners of the room. They watched her as she entered. She hesitated and nearly turned around and left, but then she found her courage and advanced toward the seated figure.

She approached the table and slowly sat across from the woman. Mirany discretely studied her. Seer Risa was a woman of ambiguous advanced age who made her living by telling fortunes and revealing the secrets of the future. During the height of the tourist season, curious passersby would come to her booth in the marketplace to hear her wisdom concerning romantic prospects and fortune seeking. However, after the tourists left like flights of birds swooping off to the open sea, the marketplace became a quieter, calmer place and Seer Risa’s clients asked questions of a more profound nature.

Seer Risa took Mirany’s hands into her own old weathered ones. She bent her head and tendrils of gray hair slipped out from under her crimson hood. Mirany closed her eyes and wrapped her hands around Seer Risa’s. The air changed. Something pulsing, something living, surrounded her and flowed into her. The old woman’s hands gripped hers harder.

“Ask your question, Mirany,” the old woman rasped.

Mirany glanced to her left, at the silent, filmy figure that manifested beside her. As soon as she looked at it, it disappeared again. Mirany cringed and bit her lip. It was just a question. This was why she came here, to find the answer, so all she had to do was open her mouth, move her lips, and ask.

She swallowed nervously. Then, finally, she found her voice. “Will they ever go away? Will they ever leave me alone?”

Seer Risa smiled wryly. “Ah. Two questions. But I will let it go.” The old woman rolled her shoulders and stretched her neck, then bent her head again. She tightened her grip on Mirany’s hands. Once again Mirany felt the power swirl around them like an incoming tidal surge. Seer Risa raised her head and her ancient gray eyes met Mirany’s gray-green ones. “So. You feel it too. You also have the gift. Just as your grandmother did.”

“It is not a gift,” Mirany muttered.

Seer Risa shook her head sadly at her. “No. No, it is not. And especially not for you.” She sighed. “Your answer, child, is yes. They will always come back.”

“Why? Why me?”

“They hear your voice in the Force, and those who can will follow it. It is your gift, your curse, your power in the Force. They have always heard you. They will always hear you. And they will always find you.” She released Mirany’s hands and placed her wrinkled ones flat on the stone table. The sensation of thrumming power ebbed away.

Mirany bowed her head, absorbing the old woman’s words and their damnable implications. She sat still for a moment, then rose from her chair. “Thank you for your answer,” she said quietly. She slowly lifted her jacket from the back of her chair and slid it on.

“Your necklace,” Seer Risa said suddenly. ”Let me see it.”

Mirany sat back down. She removed the necklace with the crystal that Kash had given her and placed it in the old woman’s wrinkled hand. Seer Risa squinted as she lifted the crystal closer to her eyes. “Where did you get this?” she demanded.

“A friend. He gave me the crystal. Noenni Krixarsdotter made the wrapping for it and put it on the chain.”

Seer Risa held the crystal to her ear, nodded, then held it out for Mirany, who took it and carefully put it back around her neck. “That is no ordinary stone, child,” Seer Risa said. “You say your friend gave it to you? What did he tell you about it?”

“He said it was his heart and he was giving it to me.”

Seer Risa sniffed and raised her eyebrows. “Tell me, does he know of your visions?”

“Not yet.”

“You should tell him. He already told you his secret.”

Mirany frowned. “What secret?”

“Are you daft? He gave you his kyber crystal. The kyber crystal is heart of a Jedi’s lightsaber. It is a Jedi’s most precious possession. Your friend is a Jedi.”

“I thought there were no more Jedi,” she stammered. “The holonews—“

Seer Risa snorted. “The holonews doesn’t know anything. Apparently, there is at least one. And he is deeply in love with you if he gave you that. You are traveling a dangerous path. You both are.” The old woman pursed her lips and leaned back in her cushioned chair. Seer Risa raised her hand dismissively. “I have no more information for you, child.”

Mirany slowly rose, her fingers gently touching the crystal. “Thank you,” she said quietly.

“A coin before you leave, child, to help an old woman in her need,” Seer Risa said, following the traditional protocol.

Mirany dug into her pocket and retrieved a credit chip, then put it on the table in front of her as she recited the traditional response. “A coin is proper. Thank you for your wisdom.”

Seer Risa nodded and pulled the credit chip toward her as Mirany turned to leave. “Mirany,” she called suddenly. Mirany turned and Seer Risa stared at her. “Dark times are coming. Be careful.”

Mirany paused, then nodded. Quietly, she turned and left the room.

 

An intersting chapter.
So Mirany has indeed the force as well and she seems to see ghosts/presences around her. I wonder if her gift is similar to Kash's powers. And she finally learned about his secret, Kash defenetly should have told her before. And the old wonan is right, its a dangerous path Mirany and Kash are on,especially with the empire tightening its grip around the planet.
I also liked the worldbuilding here, another glimpse into Marfas culture and traditions.

 

It is very interesting for Mirany to have the Force and Kash being a Jedi.

 

What Anedon said and some more...

As long as Kash is not directly taking after Johnny Cash in terms of character, we both have fictional John-somethings turned into fanfic characters and it's AWESOME. And I totally didn't say this, move along, y'all.

I loved the mysticism of this scene and the final reveal of what I had known all along and just needed confirmed - Mirany's dead strong in the Force and....Kash's heart as his kyber crystal, that's so, so, so beautiful. I have a reverse of that somewhere, btw. Funny how people get similar ideas before even publishing their stuff, love it.

Just...wow. WOW.

Brilliant.

 

Chapters One-Two: Mehr sounds a lovely place and Mirany careful but receptive to new friendships.
I like her family and intrigued by the glimpses into Mehreen culture. Kash is warm and giving and kind and sincere. Very, very likeable, and if Mirany's heart is ready and opens like a blossom in spring to the sun after a long cold time, it is little wonder at all that it's to someone so gentle and sweet-natured. I love that there was an instantaneous connection between them.

Chapters Three-Four: wonderful developments here. Noenni is a true friend who celebrates her friend's happiness and I love Mirany's parents deciding that Kash is good for Mirany and wanting her to be happy. They know Mirany is a good judge of character. I can really feel Mirany's pleasure and living in the moment instead of for later, which may never come anyway. That enforcer, Holt, is going to mean trouble, a stickler for harsh regs.

Chapter Five-- ominous rumblings of more secrets. Now I know what she meant by "secrets" plural, instead of just whatever Kash wanted to confide.

Mehr is such a well-detailed society that I thought I've have to Wook it up. Only Mira_Jade is as superb at world-building.

 

Stumbled over this because I am still ill at home with an inflamed larynx, a thick throat, slight fever, dizzy from anti-biotics, not hungry, trying to force myself to drink despite the great pain and bored beyond means. (For I rather be at work with the children.)

But you gave this grey June day a meaning, because a beautiful world with a rich culture enfolded in front of me like a mediaeval tapestry. You did an outstanding job here.

Bit by bit you wove SW matters into your story: a Coruscant Jedi, possibly on the run after Order 66, kyber crystals, Force sensitivity also from another character and so on.

And your OCs a great characters to explore.

I hope that I will be able to follow this story when I am healthy again and back on the work floor.

 

I’m just coming around to review this story even though I read it as you posted, and it’s so masterfully written that I’m not sure if I should start with the character-building, the world-building, or the plot-building. So, in no particular order:

I love how you drop hints about Mirany through her relationships with other characters – with Kash, with her friend Noenni but also with her family. Having the story mostly written from her POV makes in particularly interesting when Kash finds himself alone with her parents and is told that she’s somewhat more traditional than them. Another particularly interesting aspect of her personality that is shown across the chapters is how she leaves things unsaid and how it’s a deliberate strategy on her behalf. She is wearing her widow cap for everyone to see, but she doesn’t spell it out for Kash until he asks; she tells her parents that he’s “just a friend” even though she already knows that he’s not just that; and, most importantly, there’s the reveal that she’s Force-sensitive that is so subtly hinted at in the early chapters that it still comes as a surprise. Now we have the beginning of an explanation about why she’s afraid of the dark, but I expect that there will be more to it.

A second aspect that is very interesting and that I expect to see explored in this story is the changes brought by the Empire’s presence on Marfa. As Mistress_Renata said above there’s a clear WWII France feel to all this, and more generally I love how you integrated titbits of French culture into your world-building, which is truly outstanding. All the lore about sailors and pirates, the description of the city and the family home, the self-government of Mehr really comes to life effortlessly through your storytelling, and I believe that the clash of the Imperial approach to administration and the local culture will come to a head very soon.

I hope your muse comes back so that you can continue this!

 

Thank you very much! Yes, Mirany has the Force, too, but not nearly as strong as Kash does. It’s more of a sixth sense or an intuition than a full-out paranormal capability. Kash wants to tell her, but she doesn’t really want to listen just yet. In a way, they’ve both waited so long for each other and for this relationship that they don’t want to jeopardize it. The worldbuilding is fun. I’m trying to create a culture that’s both very old, with long-held traditions, and also very contemporary. This is a place that prides itself on its heritage, but depends on Coruscant for its income, being a tourist town.

Thank you for the comment. Mirany isn’t as strong as Kash, but she’s stronger than most people would be. This makes things tricky for her.

Lol! Thanks!

Thanks so much for your comment. Risa has been around long enough to remember the days of the Jedi, and she’s not buying the propaganda that the Empire promotes about them. Mirany hasn’t really been around long enough to remember them. She has never met a Jedi and she was never taught anything about them. She honestly believes that they are extinct, so she didn’t understand the true significance of the kyber crystal. Risa, as a seer, also has the Force. She just uses it differently than a Jedi would.

Thank you for your thoughtful comments! I appreciate it. Kash pays a price to use the Force – it takes a physical toll on him. And Noenni is not a trooper, who is trained to follow orders and not think for themselves. Noenni is a creative and intelligent person, so it is harder for Kash to influence her. In a way, he’s doing this to protect her, too – if Noenni knew this was a kyber crystal from Ilum, it could potentially put her in a very difficult situation.

They will come clean very soon. She’s afraid to tell him her secret for fear that he won’t believe her, or that he will think she’s strange. She doesn’t know much about the Jedi or even about the Force, so it doesn’t occur to her that maybe her abilities aren’t as foreign to him as she thinks. And she’s been so, so lonely. She just wants to have someone love her again. She had given up on it, and she doesn’t want to lose this. Kash, of course, has to be extremely careful about who he shares his secrets with. He has been lonely too, with nobody that he can be his true self around.

Mirany’s lived a rather sheltered life, in her tourist city by the sea. She really hasn’t had to deal with the true atrocities of the Empire. The fact that her city is favored by wealthy visitors from Coruscant has protected it from the fascist aggressions that other, less popular, cities have had to endure. But all that will change.

Thank you so much! I’ve mentioned in the fanon post that the people of Mehr are ridiculously independent-minded, and they refuse to take part in the routine testing for midi-chorians that others in the galaxy have always undergone. The Mehrine people also have a tendency to marry among their own kind. Therefore, Force capabilities tend to get concentrated in certain family lines, one of them being Mirany’s. She may not be as capable of using the Force as a Jedi like Kash, but she is attuned to the Force in other ways.

Thanks! I appreciate it. Kash and Mirany are two people who have never expected to be in a relationship – and yet have waited their entire lives for each other.

The danger on Marfa is insidious. As long as it’s others, and not yourself, who is getting hurt, people tend to look the other way when evil creeps in. But Kash is a marked man, for a trait he has absolutely no control over. He was born with this ability. The last thing the Empire wants for people to see that the Jedi could be decent, even heroic, as it contradicts their propaganda of the Jedi as ruthless killers and terrorists. Getting to know Kash and seeing that he is a good man is unacceptable to the Empire because it calls into question the Empire’s excuse for exterminating every Jedi. To paraphrase Orwell, in a totalitarian society, telling the truth is an act of rebellion. And the Empire will not stand for rebellion in any form.

I figured Mirany’s old enough to make her own decisions about who she sleeps with, and she doesn’t need daddy’s consent to choose her man. It’s not like she is a virginal bride, she was married before. Still, she’s an old-fashioned, traditional kind of woman (the kind who would wear a widow’s cap for five years). She just wants her parents to feel comfortable with the man she’s chosen, especially since he isn’t Mehrine and that would be very eyebrow-raising. Her father assumed her new man was another Mehrine, since she’s so traditional. This is her way of showing her parents that Kash is a good man, even if he isn’t a native here. He’s willing to adapt to their ways.

Thank you so much! Yes, I even made a map of the city and I have a serious amount of background on it, right down to the street layout. Mehr is a lovely place, but it’s under attack and the citizens don’t even realize it yet.

Thank you! They are both lonelier than they let on, and they are both connected in ways that they can’t even understand. Mirany is at this point in her life where she wants to live again, and be more than just Aden’s widow for the rest of her life. She’s still young enough to find happiness. And Kash is a good man who has waited for her for so long.

Noenni is a sweetheart and a true friend. She is so happy that Mirany has found love again. Mirany’s parents are the same way; they just want her to be happy. Mirany has learned the hard way that tomorrow isn’t promised to anyone; if it were, then she would be bringing her little ones, the children she had with her husband Aden, to play with Noenni’s children. Noenni’s life is the one Mirany was denied when her husband died so young. And yes, Holt is bad news.

Mirany hasn’t been completely open with Kash, for fear that it would drive him away and she has waited so long for someone to love her. But you can’t keep something like this a secret forever, and they are figuring it out on their own anyway. And thank you for the compliment on Mehr! You won’t find it on the Wook, although there is a little bit of information on Marfa there. Thank you again for your kind comments.

Thank you so much! I hope that you are feeling better, seeing as it is August now! It’s tricky writing a story that is almost exclusively OCs but I try to give it the proper GFFA feel. I think that one of the problems that the empire would have after Order 66 is the fact that just because they killed off this generation of Jedi, that doesn’t mean there aren’t others out there who are Force sensitive. People like Mirany would slip through the cracks and not even realize the danger they would be in if they were discovered.

Thank you very much! I appreciate your thoughtful response. This is really Mirany’s story (it goes far, far along and I probably will be working on it, literally, for at least another year or so). I’ve written “Code Breaker” as Kash’s POV; this is kind of the sequel to it although it runs parallel to it, if that makes sense. Mirany is set in her ways. She’s stubborn, she’s proud of her heritage to the point of being a bit chauvinistic, and she sometimes says things without understanding the consequences of her words. But she is a good person, and she has been through a lot, emotionally, in the loss of her husband and with that the loss of the life and the family of her own that she assumed would be hers. She’s been hurt, and she’s careful. She lets you in and gives personal information only when she trusts you. Kash is the first man since Aden that’s she’s trusted.

Thank you! As you know, I completely fell in love with St. Malo, so a lot of that Malouine and corsair culture is reflected here. As I am also a stubborn coastal New Englander, a lot of that comes through in my description of Mehr and its citizens, too. And yes, I am basically telling the story of the Nazis in Paris, with a bit of a GFFA twist. The independent streak of the Mehrine people is going to inevitably collide with the authoritarian control of the Empire. With Commander Holt, there’s a new sheriff in town, and he is not happy with the way his predecessor allowed the Mehrine people to run their own show. In his opinion, this town has been given too many allowances for too long, and they need to be brought in line.

 

Chapter 6.

A few days after her meeting with Seer Risa, Mirany and Kash walked side by side along the ramparts, a routine they had acquired over the last few weeks of meeting nearly every afternoon. A gentle fog blurred the edge of the horizon where the ocean seamed into the sky. The brisk breeze and the cold air gave them the area to themselves. They walked unhurriedly, their steps in unison, a proper but comfortable space between them even if there was no one else around to pass judgement on them.

Kash slowed and moved toward the stone wall. He leaned against the ledge and looked down the length of the beach. Mirany mirrored his position beside him. She turned to him and his gaze met her own. He laughed gently. “What’s so funny?” she demanded.

“Nothing,” he answered. “It’s just – it’s just that your eyes are the exact same color as the sea.”They stood beside each other, shoulder against shoulder, in silence for a moment before Kash spoke again. He reached over to her, then gently brushed a strand of her brown hair out of her face. His fingers lingered on her cheek. “You’ve been quiet this afternoon,” he remarked. “What troubles you?”

Mirany sighed and shrugged. “There’s a change in the air.” She lifted her head and Kash dropped his hand, then she turned her face against the breeze. “Can’t you feel it?”

Kash continued to face her, leaning his elbow on the ledge to watch her profile. “A change in the air?” he repeated cautiously.

She stared at the water, in the direction of Rook Island and the ancient fortress on its hard rock base, at the seaspeeders that hovered over the waters of the harbor. “Yes,” she said absently. “Something is changing.”

“Tell me about the change you sense.”

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I wish I could say for sure.” She leaned her elbows against the ledge and placed her chin in her hands. “I feel as if things are, well, misaligned. As if things are broken and we aren’t even aware of it yet.” She turned to him. “Is that silly to say?”

Kash answered slowly. “Not at all. Tell me how you sense it.”

“I just do. It’s like a tingle or a shiver. I feel like … like I should be careful.”

“How long have you been able to sense things like this?” Kash asked, his voice low.

Mirany cocked her head to one side. “Oh, since as long as I can remember.” She turned her gaze back to stare at the harbor. “And how long have you been able to sense it?”

“About as long.”

Mirany glanced at him. “Then you know that trouble is coming.”

Before Kash could reply, a filtered voice barked a command behind them. “No loitering. Move along.” They turned to see an imperial stormtrooper step out of the fog behind them. He motioned at them, one hand on his gun. “I said move along. You don’t belong here.”

Mirany frowned. “Mehr is my home. I most certainly belong here.”

Kash quickly moved to step between them. “We’ll be on our way, sir.”

The stormtrooper ignored him. “Woman, this city is an imperial outpost and I gave you a command. You will do as directed. Go home. I am warning you.”

Kash grabbed her hand and tugged, and Mirany reluctantly followed him as he pulled her away, but not before she muttered under her breath.

The stormtrooper stepped in front of the couple to prevent them from leaving, breaking their clasped hands apart. “What did you just say, woman?” he asked her, his voice a low growl. He put his hand on her arm and gripped it tightly.

“I said that I am Mehrine, and this city is my birthright. You are a visitor here.” She tried to pull his grasp from her arm. “It is not proper to touch me.”

The man tightened his grip even more. Mirany cringed. “You may be Mehrine but Mehr follows the Emperor. Perhaps a night in the cells will teach you a little more respect for authority,” he hissed.

Mirany’s eyes widened in fear. “No. Not at night. I’ll go home. Please, let me go home.”

The trooper sensed his advantage and pulled her forward. “The time for that is passed. I am placing you under arrest for insubordination.”

Kash stepped in front of the stormtrooper, blocking him from Mirany. He raised his chin and looked directly at him, where his eyes would be under the white helmet. “You made your point, sir. She should just go home. This isn’t worth your time.”

The trooper paused as if suddenly unsure of what to do next. Kash drew a deep breath and touched the man’s arm. “Let her go, sir,” Kash whispered. His voice held a strange intensity, and Mirany felt a strong sensation, as if the air vibrated around her. “Let her go and head back to the garrison.”

The officer dropped his hand from Mirany’s arm. She rubbed the sore area as Kash grasped her hand again and they cautiously backed away. The stormtrooper seemed confused for a moment, then he turned around to head back toward the garrison.

Mirany began to speed up. “Wait, Mira,” Kash said, reaching for her arm. “Don’t run. Be calm. Don’t attract attention.”

Mirany slowed her pace as they made their way toward the stairway that led to the inner city. Kash put his arm around her shoulder. “You’re trembling,” he whispered. “It’s going to be all right. Just don’t panic.”

They made it to Mirany’s home, and she fumbled with the card key. Kash took her hand in his and she slipped the key into his open palm, and he opened the door for her. Silently they went upstairs to her apartment, where Kash unlocked the door for her again. They sat on the sofa. Gently, he unfastened the clasp on her jacket and slid it off her shoulders.

He pulled her close to him and smoothed her hair with his hand. “It’s fine now. You don’t have to be afraid. I won’t let them touch you.”

She closed her eyes tightly and clung to him. “Please, don’t leave me in the dark. I can’t be in the dark.”

“I won’t leave you. I promise.” Kash kissed her forehead. “Tell me what frightens you.”

Mirany stayed quiet, clinging to him. Eventually she released him and sat back, her hands clasped tightly in her lap.

“I’ll be right back,” Kash promised. He stood up and walked into her kitchen, then returned a moment later with a glass of water, which she accepted thankfully. He sat down beside her and stroked her arm gently as she slowly sipped the water. Finally, she placed the glass on the small table in front of her. “Tell me what you’re afraid of. I can help you,” he repeated.

“You won’t believe me,” she whispered.

Kash raised an eyebrow. “Try me.”

Mirany took a deep breath. “You remember that I told you once about my grandmother? She had been a seer.” She swallowed hard, then continued. “She used to sit by my bed at night while I was falling asleep. She would sing to me. This would happen once or twice a week. It went on until I was about ten years old.” Mirany looked up at him. “Kash, she died when I was only a baby. But she still visited me.” Tears slid from her eyes, despite her effort to contain them. “The dead don’t leave me. I see them everywhere. It’s so much worse at night because during the day they just blend in with the living. I can pretend they aren’t there. At night, when everyone has gone home, that’s when I see them most. Seer Risa said they hear my voice in the Force, and they follow it back to me.”

Kash was silent for a moment. He reached up and cradled her face in his hands, then used his thumbs to wipe the tears away. Finally, he spoke, his voice steady and comforting. “They can’t hurt you, Mira. If you want, I can teach you how to block it.”

“You can do that?” she asked.

He smiled gently at her. “I can help you, my love. I can show you how to use the Force to control this.”

For the first time a small smile traced her lips. “Then it’s true. You can use the Force?”

Now it was Kash’s turn to be silent for a moment. “I told you that I grew up on Coruscant. I didn’t lie, Mirany. I grew up there – in the Jedi temple. I was taken from my parents when I was a baby because my midi-chlorian levels qualified me for Jedi training. I was good – I could do so much with the Force and it always opened itself willingly to me. But I could never control it consistently. As a result, I failed my trials and I was never chosen to apprentice to a Jedi Knight. I spent my time in the AgriCorps on Salliche.”

Mirany nodded. “You were a Jedi. It’s true. It makes sense.”

“I’ll always be a Jedi. The power never leaves me. I just seem to pay a price to apply it.” He smiled tenderly at her. “And I can show you how to harness that same power. I can feel the Force working in you. I did the moment I saw you. The Force led us to each other.”

She closed her eyes and placed her arms around him. “I believe you,” she whispered. She pulled him closer and held him tightly. “I believe you.”

 

What gentle and affirming assurances and candid disclosures, revealing of secrets on each side. Now that isn't a barrier between them and neither has the uncertainty of wondering "How will he/she feel after finding out?"

I am happy Kash will help Mirany control the ultra-sensitivity.

Interesting that they started out having a "danger sense" of impending trouble, which that nefarious trooper just confirmed. I am so happy that Kash settled that "misunderstanding".

It is interesting and something I am aware of, in this day and time as well, that an oppressive regime has to work twice as hard to convince itself that peaceful citizens are "terrorists and extremists" than it would take to actually deal with the genuine troublemakers! They're just overgrown bullies, but the problem is they have the "authority" to back up their threats.


On a side note, chuffed to learn how long Mirany's story will continue.

 

Glad that they can confide in each other their particular issues regarding Mirany's visions and Kash being a Jedi and that it is bringing them even closer together.

 

Kash really, really saved Mirany and he is not finished yet.

As we all learned via the movie "Sixth sense" it is always difficult to see the dead and to control that power.

I hope for our heroine that a Jedi can teach her the necessary skills to do so.

And of course I am healthy again, but thanks for asking. I am also in a new kindergarten since the 10th July. Among folk, who already wanted me for the 1st April, but I was weak & went elsewhere. This taught me a harsh lesson. But now I am indeed fine.

 

Nice chapter
I like how you continue showing the growing shadow of the empire around them. Mirany almost got herself in serious trouble with that imperial soldier. I liked how you had Kash use a mind trick. And he has finally admitted to her that he is a Jedi. Its nice to see Mirany believes him and I hope he can help her with these visions she has.

 

*slaps the pathetic, cowardly stormtrooper over the head to vent her anger* (This reminds me so badly of Greek police with immigrants and Roma, you have no idea how furious it makes me.)

*then melts a bit*

I love!!! how you brought the reveal to each other in this chapter. Many women would have confronted Kash about what he didn't say after that visit to Seer Rita, but not Mirany. Instead, she knows that she can confide in him, and he will confide in her too. They told each other their big secret now; in a way the bond between them is truly sealed.

It's interesting that Mirany's grandmother was a seer and that Mirany has now fallen in love with a man who has premonitions. More generally, because we know that Kash will die while she's pregnant with their son, I wonder if he'll be "visiting" her later in her life.

Also, this chapter gave me the answer to the questions I had about Kash in your last update of his diary. Apparently the Jedi Council didn't take him seriously enough, not that I'm surprised but it did give him his chance for survival, at least this far. I know from your other related stories that this one will have a tragic end, but I'm still rooting for them to find a little bit of happiness before that.

Mirany sure is a proud, stubborn Mehrine woman as seen in her reaction to the stormtrooper, and it's terribly sad to see her façade crumble at the mere mention of the dark. On the one hand, I'm hoping that Kash can truly help her cope with her talent/curse, but at the same time I wonder if not fearing the dark could make her even more foolhardy in her interactions with Imperials. Kash won't always be there to perform mind tricks and save her...

 

Yeah, that whole light in the darkness with soulmates is just. Just. Chocolate.

 

Yikes! My apologies for not getting back to you with my responses. This school year has been exhausting and I haven’t had much time to indulge in my own activities like writing. I’m sorry these thanks are so late.

Thank you for your thoughtful reply. Both Mirany and Kash were, understandably, hesitant to reveal these secrets, but they are so perfectly compatible that it was bound to come out. And it did, as a natural result of the trust that they have built together. They are attuned to their surroundings, and they are both naturally heightened to any danger (Kash due to his status as a fugitive, Mirany due to her fear of encountering something she doesn’t want to see), so they both picked up not only on the imminent danger of the stormtrooper but the general idea that things are going to get worse (Besides, the seer warned her of this earlier).

And I like what you said about oppressive regimes - the trick is to get people to fear their friends and neighbors. Divide the citizens by emphasizing the “otherness” of groups. It’s a sad thing, but it seems like it’s a surefire way for an authority government to prevent the citizens from organizing and fighting back.

Thank you for your comments! Kash has had visions of Mirany all his life. He’s literally been waiting to meet her. And Kash is the man that Mirany needs right now, not just on a personal level - she wants to be happy, to be in love again - but as a teacher who can help her get this strange ability under control. Trust is the foundation of their relationship: first trust in the Force, then trust in each other.

Thank you! This is really a turning point in their relationship - now that they know each other’s deepest secrets, they are more committed to each other than ever before. And the Empire is steadily becoming more of a dark shadow over the city.

Thank you for this thoughtful reply! I am sure you have seen more than your share of arrogant authority bullies who love to push vulnerable people around. This stormtrooper realized he had frightened Mirany, so he pushed it to see how much he could get away with.

I’m still not exactly sure how Kash escaped but I have an idea in my head. Either way, he spent quite a few years afraid and paranoid, unwilling to make any friends or stay anywhere long enough to set down roots. As for my fanon, in Mehr, there are families who are quite Force sensitive but the Mehrine keep their own records and never found it to be important to note such things as Force sensitive bloodlines. I also think that Mirany (and her father’s) Force sensitivity manifests itself in ways that are different from a typical Jedi’s use of the Force. It’s more organic, less formalized.

The thing with Kash and Mirany is the way they look into the Force: Mirany sees the past; Kash sees the future. Together they see the present.

Mirany will always be unsettled by the idea that she struggles to tell the living from the dead. (And sometimes the dead can be demanding to her.) But she has Kash now and he can at least teach her how to shield herself from unwanted intrusions. She needs him to give her powers structure and to help her learn to use them instead of having them control her.

 

Forgive me for the double post, but I keep losing @Findswoman's comments when I try to put it into one post.

Thank you! Yes, it has been far too long since I have had ten minutes to even try to catch up on this. But my certification program has only two months left, and there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

As for the story and your thoughtful response (thank you!!) - Mirany is not one to suffer fools, and as a Mehrine, nearly every Imperial stranger in her city is a fool. She feels that the soldiers have intruded on what is not theirs, and she’s very annoyed at their nerve. She does understand, at some level, the danger of challenging the Imperial military presence in Mehr, but she can’t help herself. It’s wrong, they shouldn’t be telling her what to do, and she’s not going to put up with their nonsense. Kash, on the other hand, is fairly terrified of the Empire. He knows the cruelty and ruthlessness the Empire is capable - he has seen it first hand.

I like the idea that Kash is her “light in the darkness.” In many ways, her fear keeps her in the dark, and Kash can give her the knowledge to control not only her visions and her Force sense, but her fear, too. Their love will guide them.

 

Chapter 7.

Kash appeared at the shop unexpectedly early, before the working day had even begun. Mirany had been in the front of the shop preparing for the day’s business, and she immediately sensed discomfort from him. She put down her tablet of inventory data and came over to him. He hesitated at the doorway and glanced around nervously.

“What’s wrong?” she asked him, her voice low.

He was quiet for a moment. “I had to leave Oestershore. There was trouble at the factory yesterday.”

Mirany glanced quickly down the narrow street but there was no sign of the stormtrooper patrol that had begun to frequent the tourist block. Then she gripped his arm with her hand and pulled him into the store. “Come in. Let’s talk.”

Kash picked up a duffel bag from beside his feet and followed her into the shop. It was empty this early in the day. The mists still clung to the street and swirled around the walls, and the few tourists who were beginning to visit the city usually waited until later in the day when the weather cleared to venture out. Nonetheless, Mirany and Kash went to the back office, where they were unlikely to be spotted by the casual passerby.

“What happened?” Mirany asked him as he sat down in her chair. She perched on the corner of the desk and faced him.

He sighed and ran his hands through his wavy brown hair. “An imperial officer came to the factory yesterday. He brought about a dozen stormtroopers with him. They called out the names of all the nonhumans who were working there, and they said these people had to come with them.”

Mirany frowned. “Why? What did they want them to do?”

Kash shook his head. “They didn’t want them to do anything. They just didn’t want them. They're being deported to their planets of origin. They took near-humans and mixed species people, too. Anyone who wasn’t straight out human is gone.”

She sat back, frowning. “Weren’t they good workers?”

“It doesn’t matter. It’s a new directive. The purification of the Empire or some such shavit. Only humans are allowed to work in defense programs now. Any nonhumans are out the door.”

Kash moved in closer to her and spoke just above a whisper. “This is how it starts, Mirany. Next they will start to do mandatory ‘health screenings’ - blood tests to look for midi-chlorian levels, just in case some Force sensitive got mixed into the population. And if they find anything, then that person is as good as dead.” He looked at her anxiously. “I can’t stay there. They'll find me.”

Mirany leaned closer, taking his hands in hers. “Then stay with me.”

He shook his head. “I can’t. I can’t put you - your whole family - into danger like that.”

“Well, then, that’s a problem, because I can’t let you leave. I love you, Kash Ferros. I won’t lose you.”

“Suppose I did stay with you. Then what will we tell them if the soldiers should come around at night, on a random search of the property, and find me living there?”

A determined look grew upon her face. “What business is it of theirs? If they don’t ask who you are, then we say nothing. My family will go along with it. As for the neighbors, they mind their business. Nobody will give you away. Besides, nobody wants to volunteer any information to the troops. Everyone here smiles and cooperates with the garrison, but under their breath, they say things in the old maritime tongue that would make a Corellian pirate blush. You’ve seen the slogans that were blasted on the seawalls. You’ve seen the torn Imperial banners, the vandalism to the garrison vehicles.”

Kash looked alarmed. “They aren’t still acting out against the garrison, are they?”

Mirany shrugged. “You can’t expect Mehrine to simply obey. We will not sail quietly towards the dusk. We have done things our way for hundreds of years, and this garrison cannot make us bow down to them simply because they wish it.”

Kash’s brows creased into a worried frown. “Mirany, your father - he’s a council member. They’ll hold him and the other council members accountable.”

“Ah, what can he do? Every time a troublemaker is arrested - and it is usually some student, bored with the curfew and the citizen movement restrictions - he speaks with the boy or girl and tells them to stop. And a week later there is another incident with a different bored student.”

Kash hung his head. “It’s too dangerous now. For me, for you, for your father, for all of Mehr. Don’t you see?”

“Yes, it’s dangerous. But where will we go? What choice do we have?” she demanded indignantly. Her voice took on a fierce edge. “This is our home. We survived the Great Burning. We survived storms and attacks from invaders. We survived, Kash. We’ll survive this too.” She became quiet, then, as if relenting, she leaned in and kissed him gently on the cheek. “I love you,” she said, resting her hand against his bearded face. “Don’t leave me. I can survive the Imperial propaganda littering our streets. I can survive the raids on our homes. I can survive the guards stopping me for my scandocs in front of my own family business. But I can’t survive losing you. Please, Kash. Stay.”

Kash sat silently for a while, then he sighed in resigned agreement. Mirany pulled away from him and dug her hand into the pocket of her skirt. She pulled out a scankey, then placed it in Kash's hand and folded his fingers over the card. “Go back to my apartment,” she said quietly. “I’ll meet you there tonight. I’ll tell Papa what we’re doing when he gets to work. I promise he’ll take care of you.” She stood up, then waited for him to stand also.

They stood facing each other for a moment. “You’re a stubborn woman, Mirany,” he said finally, placing the keycard in his jacket pocket.

She smiled wryly. “I am Mehrine. It can’t be helped.”

Kash toyed with a strand of her brown hair, then he lowered his hand to her throat. His finger brushed the gold chain that held the kyber crystal pendant. The green flecks of the crystal sparkled in the light. He raised his head to look her in the eyes. “I won’t put you in danger, Mirany. If anything goes wrong, I have to leave. Better they chase me by myself than they find you with me.”

A sudden noise from the street startled them both. Kash placed his hands on her shoulders, leaned down, and kissed her quickly before breaking away from her. “I have to go. I’ll see you tonight.”

She watched him as he made his way back through the store. He paused at the open doorway, turned to her once more, and mouthed something before he disappeared into the morning mists.

Mirany stared at the empty doorway. “I love you too,” she whispered in reply.

 

I love the Mehrine & Mirany's continued courage & her love for Kash and determination to protect him. Kash's warnings are accurate unfortunately; he's probably seen the progression more times than he wants to recall, of herding off and deporting nonhumans and then Force sensitives

Yet, he is equally determined not to bring harm to Mirany and her family so if he has to, he'll leave.

 

Hope that Kash is able to stay and not be forced to leave.