Ask Best of Both Worlds

[Astra Calloway]

A great benefit of being a Jedi was the intergalactic space travel because it meant an excuse to visit home whenever on a mission in the outer rim which quite frankly was a lot, it was the outer rim after all, it wasn't exactly known for its' political stability and peace. However, Dantooine was a breath of fresh air, literally, compared to some other outer rim planets and moons such as Nar Shaddaa. It was far removed from many of the most crime infested planets, although Dantooine had its' fair share of crime too, it was no Tatooine.

Astra wasn't about to mill around the house in her Jedi get-up so once home she slipped into a regular t-shirt and trousers and made her way into the kitchen to make dinner, presuming Alana wouldn't have even considered starting at that time, or any time for that matter. How did that woman take care of herself? Somehow she did though as she spent a majority of time away from Astra and Kraud either for work, work of a nature that Astra and Kraud both voiced their disagreement on, or because of Kraud and Astra's commitments to the Jedi Order.

She wished there was something she could say to change her sister's mind, to make her consider joining the Order but nothing her or Kraud had said so far had persuaded Alana and so the trio had settled into the way of life they were currently living. It was relatively peaceful, each let the other live their own life and make their own choices, the only real source of friction now was when Alana took deathsticks which caused tension among the impromptu family, especially Astra who felt connected to her sister in a way she couldn't quite explain. She was connected to everyone via the force, she knew that, but that connection felt stronger to Alana to the point where she could feel her sister's emotions even when she wasn't near.

Astra had many years of cooking experience under her belt, something told her that Kraud wasn't trained in domestic tasks, and liked to believe she could make a mean stew though whether Kraud and Alana agreed with her was another matter. She carefully chopped some vegetables while waiting for the water to boil before adding them to the pot with some seasoning and covering with a lid, all while singing a song out loud, they had the music somewhere but nothing beat a bit of a capella.



@Algarus

 

[Alana Calloway]

Alana was quite at peace with herself, half asleep in her room when she heard the sound of someone knocking about in the kitchen. Her curosity peaked, the white haired huntress sat up and rubbed her eyes, trying to bring some sense back into her foggy mind before making a venture into social interaction. She knew Astra was cooking, don't ask how, she just knew once her brain started to boot up. Clad in her Wampa T-shirt and pajama pants, Alana would join her sister in the kitchen, her thoughts clinging to a hope that perhaps they could actually have a good discussion and not dissolve into an argument about death sticks and jedi nonsense. "Yee claw!" Alana grinned as the words left her mouth, hoping her sister would respond back as she neared the kitchen; as was demanded via the strange tradtition the two had created.

She turned to corner to find Astra getting the cooking ready, singing some song that Alana couldn't place. "Well howdy there sister, what are you cooking up tonight?" Alana asked, creeping on up to see what her favorite sister had in-store for dinner. "Mind if I help out Astra? Be a nice break from the typical routine you know?" Yea, it hadn't been easy trying to do things without her sister around, but Alana could still take care of herself. Unlike what everyone else thought, she wasn't helpless and she didn't need saving all the time. Yea, she had an addiction, but so did Astra; if her sister went one day without talking about the 'force is with you' she'd be amazed. "So how have you been sis? You and the old man been keeping the streets clean while I've been out?" Alana asked, hopefully given permission to help in preping food for tonight, as she would move to the sink and begin to wash her hands. To say she felt anxiety was putting it mildly, she always felt like she was walking on eggshells around Astra these days.
@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

Astra smiled as she could feel Alana's presence moving towards the kitchen, momentarily diverting her attention from the cooking to reply to her sister. "Yee claw." She called back, unsure how far the tradition dated back but no doubt it was in reference to the slang Alana seemed to pick up from somewhere and it certainly wasn't from Kraud.

"Just the usual, vegetables boiled in style." She replied. "Sure, don't eat it along the way though." She warned, unafraid of smacking Alana's hand if she starting eating the food as she prepared it. With that, she placed Alana in front of a chopping board, placed a knife in her hand and put a potato in front of her before standing against the wall and folding her arms, watching her sister display her budding domestic skills. "At least I can't tickle you when you have a knife in your hand." She smirked.

"Oh you know... good, yeah. It's been hard work but it's been worth it." Astra replied, making a conscious effort to portray the Jedi in a good light as she hoped that one day Alana's stance on the Order would change, hopefully she would even consider joining but for now she would have to drop seeds of information here and there. "How's your... work been?" She asked, though clearly uncomfortable with the topic, she wanted to know about Alana's life, even if she didn't agree with her sister's choices.



@Algarus

 

[Alana Calloway]

Astra accepted the greeting, which Alana took as a good sign; ignoring it meant they were about to have an argument, which she was not in the mood for. "Nice, least one of us is eating healthy." She joked, smirking at her sister's warning to not eat the food; she knew her so well. Being faced wit her first challenge of the day, Alana began to cut the potato, showing Astra that she certainly knew how to manage that obstacle. She threw her sister a dirty look at the 'tickling' remark. "Well if you do, I'm not going to be responsible for what happens." Not like she would actually do such a thing, but hey, someone was going to get hurt if Astra wanted to play that game.; but she knew her sister wouldn't do that, least not without a really good reason.

"Thanks for sticking with Kraud. I...know he's not exactly happy with me right now, but I just...I have to do my own thing you know?" She sighed, pausing in her cutlery as she looked back to her sister, mind a wonder if Astra understood how conflicted she felt in her life right now. "The voices are getting worse Astra, and I'm not sure what to do about it." She shrugged her shoulders, cutting back at the potatoe, though she nearly nicked herself as she was a tad distracted at current. "Work has been...nonexistent. I'm thinking of going to Ryloth with Ines, you know, see if the guild there will have me on. I mean, not everyone can tell me no right?" She chuckled, setting the knife down as she had hacked her potato to pieces just like she was supposed to do. "I know I ain't been nothing but a pain for a long time, but that's going to change Astra. I don't want it to be like this." She sighed, setting her hands on the counter as she kept her head down, biting at her lip just a tad.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

It was certainly comforting to see that Alana could take care of herself, though the extent to which she could take care of herself was questionable given her comment on healthy eating. "That's a risk I'm willing to take." She smirked as she unfolded her arms as she joined Alana in cutting the vegetables. It was nice to be able to spend time with her sister among the chaos that was their lives now, she missed the simplicity of life before but felt that the Jedi Order was where she was supposed to be - that was her place in this world.

"Alana... he's just worried. He doesn't say or do things to spite you, he's just worried, we both are." She replied with a sympathetic tone. "I know you have to do your own thing, that's completely understandable. The Jedi Order is where I'm supposed to be, I know it, but if it isn't for you then that's fine. Being a bounty hunter isn't for me." She shrugged. A lot of conversations that veered into this area tended to end up as arguments, though Astra would do all she could to avoid an argument today, everyone needed time to heal still.

"Worth a try." She replied in attempt to be supportive though really she hoped her sister would find another line of work. "That's not true." She said, looking at Alana with furrowed brows. She had been a pain for a long time, there was no denying that but as family, her and Kraud could look past that and love her for who she really was despite the tensions that often arose. "So you're going to... try and stop?" She asked to clarify. If that were the case then Alana would be taking a huge step but after all she had seen up until now, it seemed unlikely that she would want to commit to change.



@Algarus

 

[Alana Calloway]

She had missed her sister dearly, perhaps more than she knew. Astra was her other half, and they both knew it. For once they weren't at each others throat, and it was nice. "Yea, well maybe I'm worried too." Alana responded, looking back to her sister and shrugging her shoulders, a wave of anxiety rippling through her and would be sensed by Astra. "I know he's always comparing me to you, wanting things from me that I just can't give him. It's aggravating Astra. I just don't know what to do about it. What does he even want from me?" Alana asked aloud, knowing all to well her sister didn't have an answer. She looked to Astra when the woman said being a bounty hunter wasn't for her, and it wasn't, but why had people given her so much trouble for not wanting to be a part of the order. "If it's understandable then why does everyone keep looking at me the same way? Just disappointment wherever I go. You know Kraud hardly looked me in the eyes when he meet me at the spaceport. Just...." Alana trailed off, rubbing the front of her head as her brain told her what she already knew; he was ashamed with her. "I just want him to be proud me Ast. You and him both." She finally said, her hands clasped at her front, her gaze falling to the ground. She readjusted her gaze as her sister stated that it wasn't true. "We both know that I'm right Ast, you can't tell me you weren't relieved when I left home after the last argument we had." She said with a sad expression, knowing that she herself was slowly tearing her family apart, and she had no one to blame but herself.

"I've tried Astra. It isn't easy. But...I want to." Alana sighed, looking down at the vegetables they had cut. She looked to her sister, conflict stretching across her features as she knew that her sister wasn't exactly fond of her drug addiction. "It's just the voices Astra. I can't find another way to get them to stop." She muttered, stepping away from the cutting board as she wasn't sure what to do. "That's why I stopped learning with Kraud, I....I can't keep the voices in check. They slip out, make me want to hurt people. Sometimes I can hear what other people think, and I can't block it out..." She trailed off once again, stepping out of the kitchen as it was getting a little more heavy of a conversation than she had expected, but kept herself by the door so she could keep speaking with her sister without slowing down her cooking process. "I was scared I'd end up hurting one of you, that was the reason I stopped trying to learn. The drugs are the only thing that keeps them quiet Astra." Alana's eyes had gotten a tad glassy, as it would become rather apparent to Astra that her sister was barely holding back tears. The truth was Alana felt she needed the death sticks to keep herself in check, and sadly it had devolved into an addiction that she felt she needed, no, knew she needed. If there was a way to get clean, Alana wasn't sure, but she knew that until she did her family wouldn't be the same.

@Sunfrog

 

[Astra Calloway]

The conversation had taken a turn which was concerning Astra and clearly making Alana anxious so she set down the knife to turn her full attention to her sister in her moment of need. "He isn't." She shook her head, having never heard Kraud say anything negative about Alana behind her back. The only time Astra said anything particularly unkind was to her sister's face but they would always make up afterwards so she couldn't imagine Kraud making remarks about her covertly or even who he would make them to. "He loves you dearly, Alana, we both do." She tried to offer some reassurance to her sister.

"He doesn't think you're a disappointment, it's just..." She hesitated, trying to choose her words carefully. "It's been difficult on all of us, it affects us all. I think he gets stressed about it and I do too." She reached out to take Alana's hand. "But you can put that behind you." She offered a small smile. Watching her sister seem so broken and hurt made Astra feel the same way and though her voice was steady, she had tears in her eyes. "We will do all we can to help you, Alana, we always wanted to but I don't think either of us really knew what to do. Let us help you." She pleaded.

After Alana had been addicted for a while, Astra began to grow more irritated and annoyed with her sister for minor things, believing that she wasn't trying hard enough or that she was selfish and ungrateful and sometimes those feelings would still emerge but today she knew that empathy was vital for the healing of both parties. Both were hurting and maybe they would be able to understand that from the conversation they had initiated. Astra walked over to Alana and wrapped her arms around her sister, pulling her tightly into a hug. "We love you and we always have." She said quietly.


@Algarus