fandomtownies | Thursday night: At the playground.

Thursday night: At the playground.

After the town meeting, Duce headed off for a walk, to think. There was a lot to think about, a lot going on, and things were changing so quickly.

Shuffling her feet through the crisp fallen leaves, she wasn't quite aware of her surroundings until she nearly bumped into the carousel. Tilting her head, she smiled at it, fond memories of whirling other children around until they nearly vomited from the centrifugal fun. Ah, memories.

The playground was barren, empty of children due to the late hour. Duce headed over to a swing and sat on it. Her small size was an advantage in this situation, allowing her to actually kick off and swing without having her feet scrape the ground. Winding her arms around the chains, she swung hard, until the rocking of the set caused her to worry she might flip it. Slowing, she allowed herself to drift into an idle rocking.

She looked relaxed, for the first time in a long time.

That was probably not a good thing.

((ooc: Open to anyone. Am bored. Come play))

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Returning from the town meeting, Aayla meanders around the park. A soft and rythmic squeaking caught her attention as she looked up to see Deuce on a swing.
Giving a conscious effort to be social, she approaches her. "Hello, Duce. How are you tonight?" she says, and causally leans against the post of the swingset.

Nodding politely to Aayla, Duce follows protocol and uses the other woman's first name, "Good evening, Aayla. I'm doing well. Thinking about stuff from the meeting." She frowns slightly, "You work for Frank, right?"

"I do." She brings one foot slightly up, resting her hand on her thigh. "What's on your mind?" she gently asks.

Duce sighs, "He was an ass at the meeting and tried to start some shit with one of the kids from school. Dude needs to be on a freakin' leash. This isn't the first time he's gone all pissboy in town. You might want to let him know that next time, the police are going to get involved if I have to frog march his ass right into the FTPD. He's an adult. There's no cause for him to go beating up on schoolkids."

Trying to shrug off the irritation, Duce quirked a smile at the blue woman, "So.. how're you liking town so far? Was Red able to help you with your necklace?"

Aayla's face hardens, and her pink lips are tugged down in a disapproving frown. "I'm sorry that I left slightly early, then. What you are describing is unacceptable, and I would've put an end to it. I have no regard for his being my employer if he is not going to exercise proper conduct.
Could you tell me exactly what happened?" Her tone grows serious, and she moves to be standing up straight with her arms folded. The friendly chat intended could wait till a bit later - this was more important.

Dragging her foot along the ground to bring the swing to a halt, Duce sighs, "He got into it with that Han Solo kid, got right in his face and started insulting him and yelling.. something about Bagoas quitting school because Han had sex with Jayne or something dumb. Really thought they were about to start a fistfight, so I told them to get out, because the meeting isn't the place for that kind of immature shit. And Han's just a teenager, so what the hell is Frank doing getting into his shit, you know? Apparently they continued it outside and the cops were called in. Don't know what happened from there. It's not the first time those two have gotten in one another's faces. Frank, Jayne, Han, and Bagoas all really need to get their shit together about who's fucking who. I mean, it's really creepy - the three males are fighting over the eunich and passing him between them like he's.." Duce just about spits, "property. You should see how they treat him at school. It's sick. One minute, either Han or Jayne will love all over him, another they make him cry. That kid has to be so fucked up."

Aayla sighs heavily, quoting one of the most basic teachings she had learned as a Jedi, half to herself, trailing off towards the end. "Jealousy leads to anger... anger leads to hate... hate leads to suffering..." She shakes her head. "It seems that none of their behaviour is proper, yet Mr. Donovan has the responsibility of setting an example for those younger than he."
Looking down, she ads, "It does disturb me how most humans... and Twi'leks... tend to act when left to their own vices." She looks to Duce. "Twi'leks sell their own kind into slavery as if it were nothing. I have immense respect for all life, as every one has its part in The Force. If I hadn't been found to be Force sensitive, I very well could have been sold as a dancer or slave to any number of different people. I've seen very sad Twi'lek women brought down to kissing the feet of crime lords and senators alike. It is not something that I or the Jedi take lightly. My sympathy is with this Bagoas..."

Duce shakes her head in disgust, in agreement with Aayla's position on Frank.

Aayla's next comment causes Duce to swallow hard, going pale at the mention of slavery. She looks up into the night, and comments quietly, "I hate slavery, in all its forms. Noone has the right to make another being lose its dignity and self worth, to treat it as though it were a thing and not a sentient, thinking being, with feelings that ought to be respected. I know what it's like to be treated like that, to be considered pariah."

She adds quietly, "I am sorry for your people, Aayla, and I'm glad you escaped that fate. Even hearing it makes me vengeful."

"I feel bad for Bagoas. He's just a boy, and from his actions, he's used to being owned. It makes me ill to see people taking advantage of that."

Aayla nods sadly, then looks at Duce. Her lilac eyes radiate with wisdom beyond her years. "Perhaps you could help Bagoas through your experience. Pain and uncomfortable events should be used for knowledge and growth, of both yourself and others.
One can be upset at what the world or a society is like, but if one never does anything about it, the world becomes stagnant and dies..." Taking a deep breath, she also mentions, "I believe to have seen Bagoas in the hotel. He does have a very sad and dull aura around him, but I'm fairly sure it's strictly due to what has happened to him. His spirit just doesn't see a way to express its true strength over his history."

Duce's mouth twists into a humorless smile, "I thought about it.. but there's a problem. I have serious anger management issues, and if I get involved, at least two of the bastards lurking around Bagoas are going to lose vital parts of their anatomy. I've stayed out of it because if I get involved, I'll get even angrier, and .. that won't help him. He's already being torn between at least three people - another person fighting over him will only shred him further and," she sighs, "I'm not very good at peaceful conflict resolution. Not yet. I'm learning, but it's still much easier for me to just turn the person I have a problem with into a statue. Then I don't have to deal with it."

She muses, "I have thought about talking to him. From what I've heard, he's from somewhere around my original timeline, so I've thought maybe hearing from someone who was there.. that the whole institution that created him was heinous and wrong, maybe it would help. My problem is that.. with some slaves back then, that was all they had. Their only self worth was being property, and if you took that away from them, you left them empty and they usually didn't survive it. Bagoas is torn up inside. I don't want to add to that. I don't want to be the reason he becomes a statistic."

"Hmmm..." Aayla thinks for a while about Duce's reaction. Glad that she was able to be so open about her nature, what she said struck Aayla as the very flaws which the Jedi try to eradicate. "Even if they who make the problems are stone, the problem does not turn in such a way. It stays as a stone in your mind. If you have enough of these, they can start to weigh you down.
I can understand your apprehension over trying to help. It is good that you know your own nature as to reflect before acting rashly. That is a very strong quality to have, as acting out of anger and emotion most often leads to a situation worse than the one you try to fix," she speaks, her voice calm, rational, and somewhat soothing.
"If I see Bagoas, I will speak to him, but will keep what you said fresh on my mind. Your insight will aid me in this matter. Ignorance is sometimes as bad as anger..." She leans against the pole again and looks out over the park, appearing somewhat sagely, dispite her relative youth.
Smiling she turns back to Duce and changes the subject. "Red told me that he would have a sketch of a possible necklace (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/1003/LonelyShifter/azurejedi/Crystal01.jpg)." Giving a laugh that bordered on a scoff, she adds, "You're not the only one who isn't entirely pleased with Mr. Donovan's behaviour."

(ooc:Sorry! Passed out for a couple hours, when I came back, you'd gone to bed!)

Duce murmurs, "Not to mention the guilt for killing someone. Noone comes back from being a statue."

She shrugs a shoulder, "I'm learning how people.. deal with things. It's not easy. I spent several hundred years with people trying to kill me, so my defense mechanisms are running a little hot."

"I think it would be a good idea if someone talked to Bagoas, maybe suggested he take some time off from all those.. ah.. 'romances' he has going on, to give him some perspective." Her shoulder shrugs again, and changes the subject.

"Red does good work, for a guy without thumbs. He has some pretty sophisticated graphics software, and his imagination is unique. I'm sure he'll come up with something lovely. Where did you get that stone? I've never seen anything like it."

Aayla notes this sadly. She'd been forced to kill before out of self defense, so she understood what Duce had said. Thank goodness more and more battles she fought were against droids instead of living soldiers.
At the mention of her crystal, a reverent smile tugs on one corner of her lips and her eyes soften. "A Jedi Knight's weapon is what is called a lightsaber. It is essentially a sword made with a beam of light and energy, and can cut through nearly anything. The hilt where the blade is created contains from one to three different crystals or stones. The central one is the most essential and produces the blade. Others amplify and alter it so it can be stronger or easier to deflect attacks from blasters or other lightsabers.
The crystal I showed you is the main one for my lightsaber.
When I applied for my job at the hotel, Mr. Donovan expressed that since he is unable to wield my weapon, he doesn't trust me with it..." Her eyes narrow in slight annoyance and insult, but not anger. "I've never heard such an absurd request and felt very disrespected, but agreed..." She sighs, possibly doubting her choice to accept the position working for Frank at the hotel.

Duce nods, "No idea what a Jedi is, but we had knights where I came from too, so.. that part I understand. So you have a laser sword, and the rock is it's.. erm.. powercenter? That's pretty cool." She thinks of something, "Hey.. so is your lasersword the same color as the crystal? Cuz that'd be awesome. That color's amazing."

She frowns suddenly, "What the fuck? You've got a weapon you're trained in, you're obviously not from this world, so potentially not proficient with any of our weapons, and he makes you disarm because he's feeling threatened by it? And you continue working for him? There are other jobs in town, you know. Hell, Red needs more help around the shop, even. Frank sounds like he's got some sort of serious penis-compensation issues going on."

(ooc: I'm on painkillers for an ulcer, so I sporadically take impromtu naps for a couple hours.. *sigh* Like just now, too. Still wanna play, though!)

Aayla smiles, and nods her head. "Yes, my lightsaber is blue, just like the crystal." There are different colours of crystals that a Jedi can get, depending on their job and abilities. A Jedi Guardian such as myself has a blue lightsaber. I don't suppose you've met Anakin Skywalker? He's a Jedi here that I've trained with and is training to be a Guardian as well."

Her smile is wiped away by Duce's outburst. Her brow furrows slightly, and her expression is one of seriousness and slight concern. "I will take what you've said seriously, however I have given a commitment to do the job I have agreed to. If there is a problem in the future, I will consider finding another place of employment and residence, but until then, I will do what I gave my word that I would.
Protection is what I have been trained to do, and the job itself suits me so far."
She raises an eyebrow in confusion over Duce's comment on compensation. Her eyes look away and back a few times, the look of perplexion being one no one here had seen, and she very infrequently showed elsewhere. "I don't know what human reproduction has to do with this, but..."

"Never met him, but I have a CD of him playing 'Little Bunny Foo Foo' on some sort of big cowbell," Duce smirks, "Funniest. Thing. EVER. So he's got one of those laser swords too? Might want to tell him to not let the school find out, or they'll make him take the crystal out too. There's a weapon's ban underway."

Duce nods at the statement about word-keeping; she understands that far more than she wishes she did, "That's understandable.. but Aayla, if it gets too much, get out. Seriously. The guy's bad news and he's asking for heaps of trouble."

Watching the confusion, Duce smiles slightly, "It's an Earth phrase.. When a man's reproductive organ is particularly small or ineffective, it tends to make him covetuous, jealous, and aggressive to anyone he perceives as having better.. ah.. equipment. And that aggression can be triggered by objects that make him remember just how small and inefficient his organ is. In Frank's case? Sounds like he's got it bad."

(ooc: Works. We can either get them out of this scene and continue later, or just slowplay it. I'm gonna be on and off all weekend anyway. hee.)

"When I talked to Anakin at the park yesterday, he mentioned how he keeps it locked up in Senator Amidala's apartment. If Master Kenobi taught him anything, he should know better than to openly defy the authority here. It wouldn't surprise me if he moaned like a bantha about it, though." she smirks, laughing to herself and crossed her arms.

"I take your advice, highly, Duce." she says, deciding to call her by her first name in a gesture of familiarity and friendship. "My duties are to ensure the security of the hotel, which means I should keep an eye on its owner, as well - which I will most definitely do now."

She shrugs off the human turn of phrase, but keeps it in the back of her mind as another cultural aspect.

Looking up at the dark night sky, dotted with fewer stars than she's used to, she sighs, almost a yawn. "It's getting very late... I should go back to the hotel and rest. It seems this Parents Weekend thing is going to be a big event and I should be as alert as possible." She turns to Duce and smiles.
"It was very good to talk to you. Perhaps we can get together sometime later to talk about some more... uplifting topics. I should be by Red's store on Monday to see his ideas for the necklace. Will I see you then?"

Duce grimaces, "Yes. Parent's Weekend. My father will be in town Saturday. This should be interesting. I'll be at work Monday, so yeah, you'll see me there. Take care!"

Duce waves as Aayla leaves, and begins to swing again.

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Thursday night: At the playground.

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