[SpringsSong]

"That seems extreme," Lana said.

"I don't disagree," Xyshari said. "At least, when Ti and I were suddenly Council, we had both been council guard before. We knew what needed to be done to defend the other, and we had stern words for each other about what would happen if they other got injured because they were stupid on a mission," she said.

"And did you have to act on those stern words?" Lana asked.

"Thankfully, no," Xyshari said. "I know enough skills to defend me against almost anything, and he... well, he has his own ways of staying out of trouble."

[ 3BPs awarded ]

[SpringsSong]

"But Loq's death was a tipping point," Lana said.

"We both realized it was but a sample of what was to come," Xyshari said. "We weren't young anymore. We were becoming jaded, instead of eager. Desensitized instead of compassionate. Going through the motions," she said, motioning with her hands vaguely. "Like I said, we share a particularly strong bond. He knows, for instance, that I'm going to Ilum right now. I know he's back where he took me when he saved me," she said. "When we found what was left of Loq, it destroyed me... and it had an affect on him, too."

[ 3BPs awarded ]

[SpringsSong]

"We're here," Xyshari said as the ship attached to the docking clamp. "Come on. It's a long speeder ride to the point we'll be leaving for the tower from, and it's going to be slightly chilly. I'd suggest - "

"I've already been preparing Tapas for this exact purpose," Lana said. "I should suggest you do the same."

"Just because I've almost had frostbite a couple of times - " Xyshari began to protest.

"Yes," Lana said plainly, and Xyshari sighed. Lana could feel the Force swirl around Xyshari like a blanket, and she smiled.

"Better?" Xyshari asked, and Lana nodded in response.

[ 3BPs awarded ]

[SpringsSong]

"Let's go," Xyshari said, heading to the airlock of the ship. They would move silently through the orbital station to the shuttle, where Xyshari would indicate, in as few words as possible, that they needed to go to the surface of the planet. The pilot got them to the surface, and from there, the pair took a pair of speeder bikes and began to travel over the ice and snow.

"Did you ever get used to the cold here?" Lana asked.

"My fur did, clearly," Xyshari replied. "And... this place was home to me for plenty of time. I wouldn't trade it for anything."

[ 3BPs awarded ]

[SpringsSong]

"Even more time with Loq?" Lana asked. Xyshari chuckled softly.

"With the bond I had with him... I can still talk with him, even though he has become a part of the Force," Xyshari said. "But, if you mean in person... everything I could think to trade for him, I couldn't in the end. Because if I did... that means someone else would have died that would have meant just as much or more to me. Very likely Ti," she said. "And I have said repeatedly that I would never choose between the two of them. I just couldn't do it."

[ 0 BPs awarded - posted past the cutoff date ]

[SpringsSong]

"So, if you'd had your way..." Lana began.

"If I'd had my way, then I would have arrived in enough time to save Loq. And... I'd have probably begged him to come away with me and Ti and disappear quietly into the background," Xyshari said. "But, that also would mean that I would..."

"...not have met me," Lana said softly.

[SpringsSong]

"Exactly," Xyshari replied, guiding her speeder through a pair of tunnels. "Things happen the way they happen because the Force wills it. The Force willed our paths to cross, even if it meant that our paths crossing meant that people important to me died in the process."

"Bit of a grim outlook to have on it, my love," Lana remarked.

[SpringsSong]

"Grim or not, it's still what has happened," Xyshari pointed out, her head raising as she evaluated her surroundings. "We're almost here. You don't have to come up there with me if you don't want to."

"I'll let you have this moment alone. I feel I'd just be intruding," Lana said. "But I'll keep an eye out for anyone else to give us time enough to get out of sight."