(D4 LE-comm relays) Phone home? (open)

[Tomin]

I was Family Day, after all. And Tomin had kept in touch with hers, though Jedi training officially discouraged it. Understandable, really, if you wanted your trainees to not have other allegiances when you gave them orders.

The relays were not all free, but they were quieter at this hour, and she could slip in to add a note. Nothing major, just a message to the town relay nearest the ranch, letting family know she was still alive and fighting.

Finding them out of caff, she sets about brewing another pot while waiting for a spot to open up.

[Hatoful GM]

The atmosphere in the room was tangible to a Miraluka Jedi. Some of the people waiting were nervous, worried. Some were excited. It was busier than usual for this time of night, which kept that tension palpable. A little Pantoran girl, more curious than nervous, stared at her.

The wait was long, but not forever.

A bland technician finally called her name. He would show her how to use the equipment, and remind her that any transmission would be monitored by security.

[Tomin]

She nods her understanding, tapping in the commcode that hasn't changed in ages to see if anything would get through. With the war, surely someone was keeping an ear on the console in case of evacuation orders and the like...

[Snowflake]

The good thing of having been adopted into a clan as large as the Alpines was that you are never really far from family.

Deep down, there were still memories of a family in another world, another life. These couldn't be reached with comm relays. Or by any means Snowie would know of, really.

Maybe it was these stray memories floating to the top, maybe it was the slow, but sure trickling of people to the relays throughout the day to reach their families. The reason wasn't clear even to the Gigoran himself, but at the end of thr day he found himself wandering into the room as well.

A slow scan of the room communicates the anxiety to Snowflake better than words could, and brings a wave of sadness to the snowman 's face.

A second look also reveals Tomin at one of the desks. He takes a few steps closer, but gives her space for now as he imagines where her family was, and what they were like.

[Hatoful GM]

She nods her understanding, tapping in the commcode that hasn't changed in ages to see if anything would get through. With the war, surely someone was keeping an ear on the console in case of evacuation orders and the like...

It made sense that someone would be keeping an ear on the console. And yet, no one picked up.

[Tomin]

It made sense that someone would be keeping an ear on the console. And yet, no one picked up.

That was concerning. Tomin's lips press press tight in worry, fingers tapping as she considers who she might have check in on them...maybe see if any of the Alpine folks here could get word to her brother?

But...there's other folks waiting. She taps the console to close the connection and steps back...offering a weak smile to the next person, knowing full well that the dead line just added to the tension of those nearby as it reminded them of their own worries.

The smile picks up a few more watts of energy as she perceives Snowflake there. "Snowflake! You have some late night calls to make too? I'm going to grab a midnight snack after this, I'll wait if you're feeling munchy."

[Snowflake]

That was concerning. Tomin's lips press press tight in worry, fingers tapping as she considers who she might have check in on them...maybe see if any of the Alpine folks here could get word to her brother?

But...there's other folks waiting. She taps the console to close the connection and steps back...offering a weak smile to the next person, knowing full well that the dead line just added to the tension of those nearby as it reminded them of their own worries.

The smile picks up a few more watts of energy as she perceives Snowflake there. "Snowflake! You have some late night calls to make too? I'm going to grab a midnight snack after this, I'll wait if you're feeling munchy."

Unlike much of what Tomin carefully explained to Snowflake with words, the look'em's expression is clearly caught by the Gigoran, turning his own to one of concern and - hopefully - empathy.

"Oi, Tomin", he says, with a small supportive smile. "I'm sure they're just busy tonight, eh?" He said, encouragingly, although some concern hid behind his face.

"No calls for me, I guess"

He did have 'family' all around with the clan. But would it make sense to call anyone in particular? Didn't feel like it...

"Where's your clan at?", he added, as if to change the subject slightly, before tilting his head towards the door. "And which snacks did you have in mind?", he says a bit more cheerfully.

[Tomin]

She nods. "Not a lot of incoming calls getting through the tangle. Need to keep things free for the military messages and all. So might be you have some that just didn't get through. But it's quieter than it was most of the day... if you've got folks to try calling?"

There's a sympathetic smile beneath the blank mask. "My folks are all out around Twin Rivers. No answer at the ranch, but maybe they've gone to stay with one of the sibs."

She pauses by the door in case Snowflake does want to get in line to send a message. "As for snacks, found a package of Tuomin skin crisps..they scrape them fine and fry 'em into little crisps, add salt and some crunchy herbs...perfect snack."

*******
ooc, that feeling when you know you named the town but can't find where you wrote it down and have to make up another name.

[Snowflake]

She nods. "Not a lot of incoming calls getting through the tangle. Need to keep things free for the military messages and all. So might be you have some that just didn't get through. But it's quieter than it was most of the day... if you've got folks to try calling?"

There's a sympathetic smile beneath the blank mask. "My folks are all out around Twin Rivers. No answer at the ranch, but maybe they've gone to stay with one of the sibs."

She pauses by the door in case Snowflake does want to get in line to send a message. "As for snacks, found a package of Tuomin skin crisps..they scrape them fine and fry 'em into little crisps, add salt and some crunchy herbs...perfect snack."

*******
ooc, that feeling when you know you named the town but can't find where you wrote it down and have to make up another name.

"Twin Rivers..." the fluffy giant thinks for a while, but seems to draw a blank. "Is that nearby? Don't think I remember it."

Then with a quick glance at the booths. "Oh, no. No calls for me, I don't think."

For or from, apparently.

"Don't think any of the family would be expecting a call from me", he says, brushing it aside. But something seems to change in his eyes, as if he's considering something. "And... well, if I could call really anyone, anywhere maybe there [í]would[/i] be some people. But I wouldn't know where to send the call", he says with a laugh. A painful laugh, maybe? It would be somewhat hard to tell under all the fur - at least for folks relying on their eyes.

For someone relying on the force... most likely not that hard. A swinging in the force leylines would probably be noticeable as well, a mix of reaching, holding back, then cowering.

"Can I try one of them crisps, miss Tomin? They sound good!", he said, heading towards the door behind her.

[Tomin]

Tomin 'watches' the shuffling shift of emotion. It's a matter of debate whether it's harder to read such things across species as a Miralukan--just skipping a certain amount of species body language variability vs. missing some obvious things like skin color changes. Regardless, it's obvious there's something distressing going on. She rests a hand on one furry arm as they head down the hall.

"Nowhere near here. Just a small town doing trade on the river and surrounded by ranching. Forest trade comes down both rivers from closer to the mountains there. Cluster of Miraluka there, so we all kinda know one another."

Steering into a sideroom, she pulls a large packet from one of her backpack pockets, unsealing it with a vacuum-packed hiss. "Sorry you haven't got much need to make calls. I know not everyone's got much family here, and fewer now with all this going on." There's a pang at the thought that she could be one of them...Two Rivers' only real protection was being a remote and unstrategic place.

[Snowflake]

The large face turns to meet Tomin with a smile as she touches the Gigoran's arm. "Sounds like a cozy place", he says simply, with a reassuring nod. He refrains from saying anything else, but that 'shy pull' in the force reaches out again, as if somehow, weakly, tentatively, trying to act in a recomforting way.

"And no need to be sorry! It's always been like this. The clan's all family, and they're all around, so it's all good."

Which was partially true. And Snowie seemed to be relatively well received in many places - even if usually he was treated less like a person than as a mascot, or a pet. Or, maybe...

That reaching out through the force seems to wince again, there's something almost like a low whimper, then it becomes quieter, like small, uncertain ripples on the surface of an invisible lake.

"Did Tomin grow up with the clan in Two Rivers, then?", he asks with a curious tone. Was there a subtle hint of longing, there?

[Tomin]

There's a curious tilt to her head at that 'reach'. "Ah, you're Alpine clan? My brother's a pilot with them." Which likely meant smuggling, but possibly chauffeur for someone higher up. "But our family as a whole isn't part of the clan. Just...adjacent, like most everyone is outside of the cities."

She passes over the packet. The 'chips' are satisfyingly crisp, getting a bit of chew to them after that first snap. The seasoning ran savory/peppery.

Thoughtfully, she adds, "Jedi are a bit like a clan too. You split from your family, or they'd rather you do, but that's hard to manage in an out of the way place like this. So I grew a bit on the ranch and grew up at the Temple, though my folks would come out to see me on Family Day."

After a moment, she adds, "anyone in the clan you considered like...close family? Someone raising you, or just more of a group thing?"

[Snowflake]

There's a curious tilt to her head at that 'reach'. "Ah, you're Alpine clan? My brother's a pilot with them." Which likely meant smuggling, but possibly chauffeur for someone higher up. "But our family as a whole isn't part of the clan. Just...adjacent, like most everyone is outside of the cities."

She passes over the packet. The 'chips' are satisfyingly crisp, getting a bit of chew to them after that first snap. The seasoning ran savory/peppery.

Thoughtfully, she adds, "Jedi are a bit like a clan too. You split from your family, or they'd rather you do, but that's hard to manage in an out of the way place like this. So I grew a bit on the ranch and grew up at the Temple, though my folks would come out to see me on Family Day."

After a moment, she adds, "anyone in the clan you considered like...close family? Someone raising you, or just more of a group thing?"

The Gigoran's tilted head and somewhat confused look suggested something wasn't entirely clear to him in all that.

Maybe the distinction between 'clan' and 'family'?

"Oh, your brother is a pilot? That's so cool! But then... your brother and you... you're not in the same clan?"

His brain seemed hard at work, but the rippling in the force gave way to a calmer shifting now.

"And then... you left your clan to join the Jedi, yes? But you were still part of the family... but not part of the clan?"

The last question leaves him thinking for a while, and some of that more intense force-rippling comes back. "Well.... homeclans are usually a group thing!", he answers-but-not-quite.

"It was back then", he says with a smile that's at the same time loving and painful - which Tomin can't see, of course, but both feelings clearly ripple through the force, the first like an embrace, the second like a violent punch. "And it was here with the Alpine homeclan. Even if... it was a bit different at times, I guess..."

The sense of longing comes back strong, almost like a non-physical slam, but it's soon gone again.

"There were some folks who were around more, training me for the work I had to do. Some were nice! Some not so much... But then they sent Little Snowflake here and there, when and where the clan needed. So the homeclan-family was always many different faces here. It's a much larger homeclan than it was back then, I guess.... We went hunting a few times, but much less than my former homeclan... and we rarely went to gather berries".

He seems particularly sad about the last part.

"But still, all much better than it was like without a homeclan", he says in a much weaker voice, almost whispering. The presence in the force cowers again, even more so this time, as if trying to hide from something.

"Tomin's homeclan... were you always in Obroa-Skai?"

[Tomin]

She nods, plucking a chip to chew slowly while she considers the mix of words and Force messages, and vocal shifts and confusion.

"Yeah, my family's been on that ranch for a few generations. And they're..well most clans are kind of a bigger group that's got many families all kind of tied together. We weren't that. My brother's born to the same set of parents as me, and the rest of our sibs. Bio family, you might say."

She pats Snowflake's hand, "sounds like you might've lost your bio folks somewhere early on, and I'm sorry for that. Just because that's almost never something that happens in a nice way."

"Alpine clan's a big clan...and kind of a, a business organization too? So some members are like family, and some are hired on in some fashion for their skills. So, they can always use more pilots, and he wanted to do something other than ranching. Good match."

She huffs a small laugh, "and then the Jedi. I guess they're kind of like a clan too, but one for folks who can touch the Force in some way. And it's kind of chancy finding those kids, they prefer getting folks as kids so they have lots of time to train them. So they end up a bit like a family too." She smiles fondly. "Not going to call Master Saubet 'mom' or anything, but she taught me a lot of the stuff my own folks might have done if I'd stayed with them."

[Snowflake]

She nods, plucking a chip to chew slowly while she considers the mix of words and Force messages, and vocal shifts and confusion.

"Yeah, my family's been on that ranch for a few generations. And they're..well most clans are kind of a bigger group that's got many families all kind of tied together. We weren't that. My brother's born to the same set of parents as me, and the rest of our sibs. Bio family, you might say."

She pats Snowflake's hand, "sounds like you might've lost your bio folks somewhere early on, and I'm sorry for that. Just because that's almost never something that happens in a nice way."

"Alpine clan's a big clan...and kind of a, a business organization too? So some members are like family, and some are hired on in some fashion for their skills. So, they can always use more pilots, and he wanted to do something other than ranching. Good match."

She huffs a small laugh, "and then the Jedi. I guess they're kind of like a clan too, but one for folks who can touch the Force in some way. And it's kind of chancy finding those kids, they prefer getting folks as kids so they have lots of time to train them. So they end up a bit like a family too." She smiles fondly. "Not going to call Master Saubet 'mom' or anything, but she taught me a lot of the stuff my own folks might have done if I'd stayed with them."

"'Bio' family", he repeats, slowly, as if trying to internalise the words - almost like he was savouring something new. "Ah, Tomin means the folks who gave birth to you!", he adds as if finally putting something together. He had herded Banthas and taken care of other livestock, so that made sense. And that did seem to fit with what many other humans referred to as 'family', although not always. It was all a bit confusing, but maybe it was all finally coming together.

"I'm happy your brother found a good place with the clan! And... that you found a good place with the Jedi-kind-of-clan", he says, and it's clear in his smile and his energy that his happiness for her (and her brother) is genuine. That did seem to throw out a few leylines signalling longing again, though.

"My bio folks... I'm not sure I know who they were.", the giant adds pensively. "So you do remember that far back in the past, then??" It would later occur to him that if she was mostly raised by her bio family, that would make it easier to find out who you were born from, but that reasoning did not occur to him at the time.

"I wish I had more memories of that time! I can only remember some things of my old homeclan, really. Before that... " He stops, a wave of hurting shooting out again, and when he speaks again his voice is weakened.

"Before I was taken. We were... many of us were."

Tomin might or might not know of the raids often done in Gigor. If she did, it would probably not be hard to deduce what might have happened...

[Tomin]

There's sympathy in her tone. "Sorry to bring up hard memories. I don't remember anything from my earliest years, but I've no reason to doubt my folks are the ones as birthed me." There's a gentle sort of concern radiating from her as she reaches to squeeze Snowflake's arm...well at least squeeze a handful of fur. "Guess that explains why I haven't met one of your kind before. I was sort of wondering if your folks had some force sensitivity with the way you're reaching through it."

"And now the Resistance is...another sort of family...at least in the ways we all rely on each other and look out for one another, yeah?" She does resist the urge to pet the fur, even if it *is* really soft. Better to check first...later.

[Snowflake]

There's sympathy in her tone. "Sorry to bring up hard memories. I don't remember anything from my earliest years, but I've no reason to doubt my folks are the ones as birthed me." There's a gentle sort of concern radiating from her as she reaches to squeeze Snowflake's arm...well at least squeeze a handful of fur. "Guess that explains why I haven't met one of your kind before. I was sort of wondering if your folks had some force sensitivity with the way you're reaching through it."

"And now the Resistance is...another sort of family...at least in the ways we all rely on each other and look out for one another, yeah?" She does resist the urge to pet the fur, even if it *is* really soft. Better to check first...later.

"Yeah, not many that look like Snowflake here in Obroa-Skai... "But we do! Tomin is family!", the large Gigoran's last words are said with a happy, comforted tone that oddly resembles a cub yipping.

The arm seems to relax in the Look'em's hands, some tension that not even Snowie noticed was there slowly, but surely being released. The pulls and shifts in the force also relax.

After a while, the Gigoran's head suddenly tilts as he finally notices something.

"Wait. Tomin said... force? Reaching through it?"

A laugh, sounding somewhat like yipping again. "Oh, no, that must be something else! As Tomin said, that's for the cubs the Jedi clan rears! Snowflake is just a simple helper, nothing like that!"

... right? The tug in the Force slowly came back in, tentatively, but clearly unsure of itself.

[Tomin]

The Miralukan shakes her head with a low laugh. "The Force is how all Miralukan's are able to...not exactly *see* but perceive the world without eyes. So we all kind of instinctively have that amount of connection, without Jedi training."

She pats his arm...there's really a lot of floof there! "We're taught, in the Temple, that there are other, less...disciplined ways to touch the Force. We're also told, that without training, it's a lot easier to embrace the dark side of it...to react out of anger or fear." There's a pensive sort of worry that comes with the words.

"Right now you're just kind of...throwing emotions into it where anyone sensitive can notice. So probably not too dangerous there," she adds with a soothing tone.

[Snowflake]

The Miralukan shakes her head with a low laugh. "The Force is how all Miralukan's are able to...not exactly *see* but perceive the world without eyes. So we all kind of instinctively have that amount of connection, without Jedi training."

She pats his arm...there's really a lot of floof there! "We're taught, in the Temple, that there are other, less...disciplined ways to touch the Force. We're also told, that without training, it's a lot easier to embrace the dark side of it...to react out of anger or fear." There's a pensive sort of worry that comes with the words.

"Right now you're just kind of...throwing emotions into it where anyone sensitive can notice. So probably not too dangerous there," she adds with a soothing tone.

The big head tilts to one side, then another, mirrored by ebbing and flowing force tugs. A general sense of uncertainty remains, dotted here and there by some tentative "force-gestures" of sorts.

"That... that makes sense! So the Mira-look'ems all 'see' only through the force... but not all of them become Jedi clan? Even though the Jedi clan is the one that takes in cubs that touch the force?"

It's clear he's trying hard to put all this together - even though it's something that might be more or less common knowledge to many.

The tentative reaches through the force shudder a bit at the thought of 'embracing the dark side'. "I heard the homeclan's folk tell some stories of these "dark side users" a few times. Really scary stories!" The large being almost seems to shrink a bit in angst.

"I... if I'm reaching, I don't even know that, and I don't have any training...". He cowers even more.

"I don't want to become scary, miss Tomin"

[Tomin]

She huffs a bit half amused, half concerned. That fear is bordering too close to the wrong way to approach things. She leans close, trying to radiate calm. "The Jedi don't snap up all our kids because not everyone's suited to more training and not everyone gets scary that way. I mean...Jedi are pretty scary if you're fighting one."

"Try not to be too afraid of that, or the dark side. It's like crossing one of those log bridges on a ravine...you know you can fall off, so you don't act rash and go running across right? But it doesn't keep you from crossing if you need to. And being super scared of the possible fall can actually make you shaky, so you have to set that aside and just cross." There's a pause, this feels a bit like teaching and she was only barely past her own Padawan days. Still, there was a need and, as she just said, you didn't let the fear keep you from doing what was needed.

"So fear, anger, hate can be very powerful, very quick ways to reach into the Force and make it...do things. But they're a trap and make it harder to find your way into moving *with* the Force instead." She tilts her head up to 'look' at the giant Gigoran...one of those things she's learned to do with folks who have eyeballs. "The Jedi won't much want to train someone as old as you, but that doesn't mean there's not stuff you can learn. It'll be different."