[SpringsSong]

Lana Beniko. Xyshari Runok.

It was autumn. Xyshari looked out over the city from the window in the hotel that she and Lana were staying in, wearing a simple nightgown as she held a cup of hot tea close to her chest. She would swirl it around occasionally, drawing in the occasional deep breath and sipping it contentedly from time to time.

"Why don't you come back to bed, love?"

Xyshari turned to look away from the window to her wife, who had barely sat up and was looking at the Cathar through squinting eyes. Xyshari offered a soft smile as she came to sit on the edge of the bed with her tea still in hand.

"You know me, Lana," Xyshari said. "I've been an early riser for as long as I can remember."

[SpringsSong]

"I know, dear," Lana said, shifting to sit up and reaching for her robe, wrapping it around her shoulders. "But your absence is keenly felt with the weather getting colder."

Xyshari smiled as she motioned for Lana to come sit next to her, which the other did with some measure of reluctance. She wrapped an arm around Lana for a moment before taking another sip of her tea before looking to Lana.

"Would you like some tea, or would you prefer caf?" she asked. Lana hummed thoughtfully as she rested her head on Xyshari's shoulder.

"Normally, I'd say caf, but that tea smells delicious this morning," Lana said. "And you said that that's H'kak tea?"

[SpringsSong]

"Yes. It's been my favorite blend since... I couldn't even tell you how long it's been my favorite. Years," Xyshari said, standing up from the bed and crossing over to the kitchenette. She put a kettle of water on the burner of the stove, and at the same time, she went and found her tin of H'kak root powder and measured out the usual amount of it, reminding herself that she didn't need as much as she did for her own cups. Lana noticed this as she shifted around to look at her wife.

"That's not the same amount you use," she observed.

"You're right, it's not," Xyshari said with a smile. "I prefer mine a little... stronger. I know H'kak can be an acquired taste for some, so I figured I'd make yours the way I was taught to make it at first, and then we can adjust it to your tastes after."

[SpringsSong]

"The way you were taught?" Lana repeated with a slight smirk.

"I was taught to use two spoonfuls of the mixture for a cup of tea," Xyshari said, tapping the spoon she had measured the H'kak with on the rim of the cup to tap out any excess dust. "The only reason I started using more goes back to my training that I underwent on Ilum. I was making tea for myself one morning, and I noticed that there was not enough powder for me to have another cup if I used the standard amount, so rather than let it go to waste, I increased the amount... and preferred the flavor that way."

"And as I recall, this training was done without the knowledge of most of the rest of your fellow Jedi," Lana said.

[SpringsSong]

"Correct," Xyshari said. "So I couldn't exactly send for more of the powder, and the tea that the Gatekeeper at the time had wasn't exactly to my liking," she said.

"But obviously, you got more at some point," Lana said.

"Yes, as soon as I finished that training and was allowed to go back to the temple," Xyshari said. "The Master of Visions had no qualms with giving me more of the H'kak powder, understanding that my work as a Warden would have me going far and away from the temple for extended periods of time."

"You speak rather fondly of this Master of Visions," Lana said.

[SpringsSong]

"She helped me through the death of my first master - made me my first cup of H'kak," Xyshari said, coming over and bringing the second cup to Lana. "We aren't meant to form attachments, but she was something of... a grandmother to me, I guess." She offered the second cup to Lana before retrieving her own cup, coming to sit down next to Lana on the bed and pulling her legs up close to her chest. "She trained my second Master's master."

"I see," Lana said, offering a light stream of air over her tea before taking the first tentative sip. "Am I... picking up licorice notes?" she asked, her voice unable to be read as to if it was disdain or surprise.

[SpringsSong]

"A little bit, I suppose," Xyshari said. "I didn't pay it much mind at the time - it was more the fact that she offered me something of a chance at closure at my Master's death, and the comfort I felt in talking with her. I didn't get that from any other Jedi I spoke to, really."

"You Jedi were never properly taught to cope with any emotion," Lana said. "Honestly, I was surprised that you were capable of the level of passion you showed when we had our... moment on Yavin 4."

"You're not the only one who was surprised," Xyshari said.

[SpringsSong]

"You've gotten better, though. You don't seem so guilty when you get angry," Lana said, placing her hand on Xyshari's shoulder. She leaned in to give her a kiss, which Xyshari reciprocated, placing one of her hands on the side of Lana's face.

"I had a very excellent example to follow in terms of... how to balance everything," Xyshari said softly. "Letting me see that there was a way to experience everything... and not lose control like some of the other lords of the Sith I had encountered before."

"You had a very poor sampling, then," Lana commented.

[SpringsSong]

"Well, yes. One of them waged a war against me for killing his son, who attacked me first, and who I had not wanted to kill - after all, there was information we needed from him, and it is not the Jedi way to kill unless there is no other recourse," Xyshari said.

"Ah, yes - Darth Angral," Lana said. "He was disavowed after he declared war on you, in essence. That was the first time I saw your name pop up in reports. I'll admit, I was... intrigued, and I might have followed your progress from then on."

"And when you realized that I was working with Theron during the Revanite conspiracy...?" Xyshari asked.

[SpringsSong]

"Well, I didn't want to believe that it was you, and given what I had seen in the reports about your exploits, I wasn't sure I wanted to meet you in person. After all, Watcher One defected because of you, and you convinced Lord Praven to turn himself over to the Jedi Council and begin training as a Jedi. I was worried that I might end up in a similar spot as the others you faced that declined to see reason," Lana said. "...or that you would influence me to the other side."

"Well, I did offer... but that was largely because I was starting to fall for you, and I wanted to spend more time with you, and I didn't want to think of meeting you on the field of battle and having to cut you down," Xyshari said.

[Wild Pet Found]