Ask [Pantora] Breaking the Ice

[Vayla Mirana]

Ambience IC

Spoiler

Music IC

Spoiler

Up in the wintry mountains of Pantora, Floro’s Ski Lodge was an ideal resort for those Pantorans who wanted a break from the marshes and the cities without trading one crowd for another. There was a number of bigger ski resorts spread out around the moon, with activities ranging from skiing to snowboarding to snowmobiles, sleighing to ziplining to aerial lifts, and all the other side activites one could think of. Yet, most people came to Floro’s Ski Lodge for the purpose of skiing, coming up as families or couples or singles, even business partners, satisfied with cozy lodging and some sightseeing beyond skiing.

This morning, Vayla Mirana had come here mainly for the latter, her freighter on the limited lot a ways down, having taken one of the lifts to the lodge. The owner didn't much like the sound of starships and preferred they not park themselves outside his house. Vayla was one of those individuals who held a personal relationship with Floro Sasheen, a man who had been good friends with her family over the years, though those years felt like long ago. She hadn’t been on Pantora in some time, but she had certainly visited her family more recently than the sprawling Takheka Mountains and this particular ski lodge, even with both being relatively near the Pantora capital. Her family had tried to coordinate a little trip to the place on her last visit, but the timing wasn’t right for either. Instead, the Jedi Knight was in Floro’s lodge awaiting someone who wasn’t Pantoran at all.

Vayla was lounging in the common area of the lodge on the first floor, with sleeping quarters on the second. Her sofa was firm but comfy, like sitting on a pile of snow without the chill, and instead it was the warmth of the nearby fireplace that she felt as it blazed and crackled. It might have been a teacup in her hands but Floro had insisted on a mug of hot chocolate, which tasted as delicious as she recalled from the last time she was here as a little girl. Having caught up in conversation, Floro was back upstairs.

The small handful of other Pantoran guests were enjoying their own drinks or idling, a few in the array of chairs and couches in the sitting room, stools at the bar, having breakfast at the dining table or pacing the floor observing the ornaments and artifacts that Floro was so fond of keeping. It was typical for any such lodge, but Vayla happened to know that some of the horns and antlers, shields and staves, and much and more were obtained by his own two hands. Above the fireplace was a portrait of the aging man, standing and waving on a mountain peak, as though it were Vayla that he was smiling at.

She smiled back and sipped her steaming cocoa at length. A light blizzard was blowing outside but the inside of the lodge was so safe and snug that she might have had second thoughts about going for a glide. All the same, she was dressed for it, sporting a red ski suit and black furred boots, with only the gloves and beanie set aside for now. As her eyes went from the powdery world outside her window, drifting back over the flames, she could attest to hearing her name being spoken, and a chill crept up her spine.

‘Vayla… Vayla...’

...Kint?


@Algarus

 

[Mila Tesara]

It was cold. Yes, horribly, and terribly cold. If not for the fact Mila had a friend at the of this trial she wouldn't have dared set foot off of her ship. Her head-tails were coiled tightly around her neck like a makeshift scarf, as despite the winter coat she was wearing, the cold seemed to just slide right through and wreck havoc on her nervous system. She certainly hoped Vayla had a hot chocolate at the ready for her.

Marching up through the snow, several of the guests eyed the Twi'lek with curiosity. They seemed to be doing just fine in the cold, and here was this Twi'lek woman looking like she was braving a night on the surface of Hoth. The truth was a tad darker, because the truth was that the cold reminded her of that awfulness back on her mission, and the touch of that damnable cold brought back memories of dark tendrils reaching out for her, screams in the darkness. Needless to say, Mila had a great deal of reasons for disliking the cold, but she would take this any day over embracing that dark side nexus within Vader's Fortress.

Mila paid them no mind however, as she stomped on along, her thoughts focused on seeing her friend and speaking to her of something that Mila found quite pressing; the Light to meet the Darkness, always watching, always waiting. Vayla had made comments that struck home with something Mila had feared, something she had crawling within her skull ever since Mustafar; the Light needed the Dark, and the Dark needed the Light. They needed to know more about the Dark Side to defeat it, delve into it in order to conquer it; not for power, heavens no, but to know how it worked and defeat it from within. She trusted to impart this information on Vayla, and while she could trust Kraud too, her Whiphid friend would spend days mulling the idea over before reacting; Vayla on the other hand might be will to accept it rather quickly.

Reaching the front of the lodge, Mila wasted no time in reaching the warmth inside, and letting herself defrost at the warmth within. Mila pulled back her hood as she stumbled towards the warmth of the fire, trying to vanish the tingling sensations that plagued her. She could feel her friend was near by, but she was a tad preoccupied trying to warm up by the fire, it was only now that Mila would begin to look for her fellow knight, assuming the woman didn't recognize the Twi'lek that was clad in a rather nice fur coat. A smile would stretch across her face at seeing the other woman, as Mila would give a small bowing of the head. "Vayla, it's nice to see you again. Your world is..." She paused to find the right word. "Every bit as cold as I thought it would be." She meant it as a compliment, if that even counted, though she knew the woman would get a kick out of it.

@Die Shize

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Ambience IC [Recurring]

Spoiler

Music IC [Recurring]

Spoiler

​

"Vayla"

The name sounded much closer this time, and Vayla had to blink herself away from the flames to discover another familiar face. Wrapped in a bundle of fur, Mila Tesara looked comfortable enough, but the memory was fresh of their encounter on an isle of Ajan Kloss and one Twi’lek’s unfortunate encounter with the nippy water. That instant of a memory and one purple face brought a smile to Vayla’s own, accepting the welcoming distraction.

“Hello, there! Oh, I do feel a tad guilty for inviting you to the snow-capped mountains of my world of all places. While I assure you that Orto Plutonia is much more...nippy...you’d have an easier time amid the marshes of our moon. Not as freezing for you as up here, and I have a family and a farm to introduce you to.”

Realizing how much she could ramble on about the offers of her homeworld, Vayla instead raised her mug. “One step at a time, of course. For now, how about a steaming cup of cocoa!?” Not entirely waiting on a response, Vayla leaned forward in her chair toward the long table surrounded by the seats and fireplace. A freshly boiled kettle was in the center with a tall cup that had Mila’s name on it, if not literally. She fixed her friend some hot chocolate that frothed at the top and passed it over.

“Floro’s own blend! Has an earthy...chocolatey...earthiness to it.” She shrugged at the words that she did not have and leaned back against the sofa, holding her own cup beneath her chin, listening to the steady flute of the stereo and hoping to warm Mila's visage a little more with friendly if prosthetic eyes. “I am glad that you made it, Mila. Cold as it might be for you, believe it or not it’s easy to forget when you’re up here doing what we’ll be doing!”


@Algarus

 

[Mila Tesara]

It was nice to see her fellow knight again, and seeing that bright smile spring up made it that much easier to forget about the freezing ordeal from only moments ago. It seemed she might have been caught up in her own thoughts, of what Mila had no clue, but hopefully nothing to serious. While it was kind of the blue skinned woman to apologize about the discomfort, Mila didn't think it necessary. "No need to feel guilty, I came of my free will. Besides, I've never been to this world, so it was rather enticing to say the least." She was rather flattered at the prospect of meeting Vayla's family, and indeed she might come back at a later date to do just that. "Well then you'll have to come out to Ryloth and meet my family as well. They have a nice farm on the outskirts they got up and running a few years ago."

Seeing the mug that the Pantoran held, Mila gave a rather firm nod at the request for hot chocolate. That more than anything would thaw her out. "I'd be delighted to partake in one." Though Vayla's swift movements implied she already knew the answer; not that it was that hard to guess, Mila's purple skin looked far more pinkish now. The name 'Floro' didn't click with her, as the Twi'lek had a puzzled expression upon her face. "Forgive me, is that someone I should know about? That name is unfamiliar to me." Mila stated as she took the mug and carefully sipped it, and quickly gave a sound of appreciation at the taste. "Though this beverage is...marvelous." Mila took another sip, then another, burning her tongue in the process. It was extremely good, and made her ponder about asking Vayla for how such a drink was concocted.

Mila's mood was almost certainly lifted by now, as while she winced from the scolding of her tongue, she considered it worth the delicacy she was sampling at current. "I'm glad to be here, though I'm not entirely sure what it is you're planning on subjecting me to." She eyed the jacket that her friend wore and rose an eyebrow. "Though you seem rather enthused at the prospect of whatever it might be, so I'm certain it'll be entertaining to say the least." Vayla had a way about her to be fun, without being...well, uncontrollable like a certain padawan, so whatever the woman had planned, Mila felt it would certainly be fun.

@Die Shize

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Ambience IC [Recurring]

Spoiler

Music IC [Recurring]

Spoiler

​

Vayla giggled at her friend’s words. “Subjecting me to” was, come to think of it, not entirely inaccurate. Poor gal has no idea, does she? Oh, dear… She held the humor of that on her lips, trying not to get too Vayla by cracking up out of nowhere. Though, it would have been easy with all the evidence around the apparently oblivious Twi'lek. The outfit, the setting, the decorations, all pointing in one cold, powdery direction. Cradling her cup, Vayla observed the bubbly white foam whipped around the sweet brown beverage, and gave in by taking a long and lovely gulp with an ahhh.

“Marvelous is just the word, my dear! As for what I’m planning on subjecting you to, well, it seems you missed the sign on the entrance—’Floro’s Ski Lodge’.” She winked a tad too deviously for her own good. “He’s the Pantoran who gave you that cup of cocoa more than I did. I don’t know what you Twi’lek’s know about skiing but clearly you don’t know much about snow. So, I, Vayla Mirana,” she held a hand over her chest. “Have so elected to show you, Mila Tesara,” a hand her mate's way as she paused, leaned forward, and spoke plainly. “How to ski.”


@Algarus

 

[Mila Tesara]

Mila wasn't sure what Vayala was giggling at, and that was a tad concerning. Only a tad though. She raised an eyebrow at the woman, sipping her hot coco in peace, enjoying the company of her fellow knight. She blinked at being told the name of this place 'Ski Lodge?' Had she really missed the sign on the way up here? Perhaps she was in her thoughts deeper than she had initially thought. "Oh....um...yes seems I missed that sign on the way up here." Mila snickered, her headtails coiling up as she showed the first signs of embarrassment; something Vayla might have picked up on by now. "Skiing....I think I've heard of this thing. Does it involve rolling down a hill perhaps?" Mila asked sheepishly, seeing that she was going to go rolling around in the cold was not pleasing.

"My people um...we don't ski. In fact I can't think of anywhere on my world that it snows properly." Mila put her lips together, mulling the idea over, before shaking her head. "No, nothing is coming to mind." She took another swig of her hot coco, feeling much better now than she had a few moments ago. It occurred to her how strange hearing her whole name sounded. "Is...there perhaps anything warmer I can wear? I know I'm rather vulnerable towards the cold, but I'd like to not freeze every bone in my body during this learning session." Mila was really hoping her friend would say yes, because other wise this skiing business might soon turn into a torture session. Vayla was always nice and kind however, so Mila felt rather assured that her friend would have a solution to this problem. Mila looked into her mug for a moment, looking at the still steaming reminants of her drink, before meeting Vayla's gaze with her own. She had another reason for being here, but it didn't feel right to darken this fun filled activity her friend had prepared for her with more negative talk.

@Die Shize