Coruscant - Freiya Circin

“I’ve left them in the Sharp Spiral. Make obtaining them your top priority.”

Ket said, a com-link held close to his mouth as he spoke. It was risky leaving the tapes within his ship, and simply trusting Lancer to obtain them. But Lancer was a jedi master, and he had his instructions, and Ket had his as well.

His gaze turned from the datapad, which had guided him, to the run down building in front of him. The structure appeared on the verge of collapse, and in major need of renovation. Its location didn’t help it either, as sirens sounded in the distance, and homeless camping outside on the curb, preparing for the long night.

He approached slowly, his white robes providing a stark contrast to the world around him. He felt out of place, and hesitant as he entered the building. Immediately, he was greeted by what he assumed was the care taker. She moved about frantically, rushing past him as she shouted back for him to wait one moment. Standing idly within the foyer, he glanced about, his eyes observing the condition of the children, and the people around him.

“How may I help you?”

The woman said as she approached, quite winded.

“I’m looking for a girl, her name is Freiya.”

“Oh yes, she is here.”

“Can you take me to her?”

“Of course.”

She responded, motioning for the jedi to follow her, leading him through the building until they entered a large room filled with multiple bunks. Ket had found the girl before the woman could point her out, focusing in on deep blue eyes. She was special, and her force sensitivity was unmistakable. This was the girl had had come to train.

“Freiya, someone’s here to see you.”

The 7-year-old looked up, her eyes enormous with surprise. The other kids had similar expressions. A visitor? The children here barely ever got visitors. Freiya had never had one. She had only been told that the family she had been with had dropped her off at the orphanage.

“Why would anyone wanna visit you?”

“Yeah! You’re crazy!”

“Shut up!”

Freiya jumped down from her bed. The girl was dressed in rags, her black hair matted. It was obvious the children were malnourished. The girl was crippled with anxiety. She meekly walked forth and looked up at the man. There was something emanating from him, something she could not understand. It was daunting to Freiya, especially the grandeur of his demeanor. Her eyes big and huge, she blinked up at him.

“Are you my daddy?”

Ket stared back at the child, a feeling of panic stretching over him as she questioned if he was her father. He felt unsure, having never dealt with the youth. But he was supposed to be wise, and confident, yet he felt helpless before a little girl.

“Nn-no…” He said softly, a pause lingering in the air for a moment. “But I’ve got a great surprise for you. But you will need to come with me. Do you want to come with me?”

He questioned, kneeling down to put himself on the same level as Freiya.

Freiya stared at him long and hard as he got onto her level. She immediately folded her arms across her chest and scowled.

“How do I know I can trust you?”

Her curiosity led her to once again stare intently into his eyes. He would feel a faint, barely noticeable probe at his mind. Of course, Freiya had no idea she was doing this. She simply attempted to understand the man in front of him as best she could. Sighing at her unsuccessful attempt, she spoke again.

“Who are you? You can’t be here to take me out of here…even the lady at the front said no one will ever come get me. They think I’m strange.”

She was quiet for a moment before she burst into tears.

“Please take me away from here!! The other kids hate me! They hate me…”

She suddenly spoke in a whisper, as if speaking of her sins.

“They hate me because I moved a toy once…without touching it!! I think I did it anyway.”

Her eyes now turned to horror as she looked at him.

“You’re taking me to a crazy house, aren’t you?!

The girls reaction was understandable, or her first anyway. In fact, Ket even had a response ready, though he never got to give it as a plethora of quick and unexpected chain reactions quickly followed. It was like being blind sided, disoriented as Ket battled between answering one, none, all or some of her questions. After a brief sigh, he looked to the ground, and back to the girl.

“You’re not going to the crazy house. I want to take you on an adventure, where you’ll learn all sorts of things.”

He glanced to either side, noticing that there were more eyes on him then just Freiya’s. Obviously she had not been treated well.

“Do you want to be a princess?”

“A p-princess?”

Another girl decided to break the silence, shoving others out of the way.

“Hey! Mister! I wanna be a princess! Take me too! I’m better than her anyway!”

Freiya thought for a long moment. Her voice was suddenly quiet, and barely audible above the other girl bellowing about being a princess at the top of her lungs.

“I had a dream…that I would leave this place. I wonder if I dreamt about you!”

A giant smile crossed her face, the first one since before she could remember. Without pause, she slipped her hand into his and began skipping away, tugging him towards the door.

“Let’s go! Come onnn!”

Ket glanced briefly to his side as a girl came barreling through. This was far less intimidating, then Freiya’s announcement of a dream, or the strange feelings Ket tried desperately to ignore. And as she reached for his hand, and grasped it firmly, he felt an odd sensation he had never felt before. But a grin quickly formed on his face as he was led from the orphanage.

As they got to the city streets just outside, he stopped for a moment to look down with admiration.

“My names Ket…”

“Ket? That’s so short. My name is super long. It’s Freiya!”

She continued skipping. It had been long since she had stepped outside. This, of course, was not counting the times she snuck out of the orphanage. The neon lights and sky scrapers always made her feel small and insignificant. For whatever reason, she felt fully comfortable around the man. Freiya was never one to trust others. It had been burned into her mind that she was born to fend for herself and grow up alone. The prospect of having a guardian of some sort excited her beyond belief. She suddenly stopped walking, realizing that she did not know where they were going.

“So um..where am I going?”

Freiya still had her doubts. Things seemed far too magical to be true. She always knew she was different from the other children and thought it was a bad thing. Perhaps it had been a gift after all? Another question popped into her head.

“How did you find me, anyway?”

“Its only one syllable more then yours.”

Ket said with a laugh, realizing only afterwards that the girl probably wouldn’t know what a syllable was. It was that moment, that he suddenly came to grips with the fact that he would be raising this child, and would be teaching her more then just the force. It was a startling fact, but one that Ket felt unexpectedly okay with.

“Where going to the jedi temple.”

Ket responded nonchalantly before being hit again by another question. This one however, would require some explanation.

“Have you ever heard of the force?”

He questioned, expecting a quick no as a response. But then again, this day had been full of surprises; it was becoming almost routine to have no idea what was going to happen next.

“Oh yeah! I know what force is. Like when the lady at the orphanage forced me to go to sleep when I wanted to stay up! What’s that got to do with anything? I don’t wanna be forced.”

Freiya let him lead the way this time. Her head turned in all directions, taking in her surroundings. She noted the constant sense of security she got from holding his hand. She never remembered feeling this before. Somehow, she knew that Ket would be able to explain a lot of things. He appeared to be the only one to stop and notice her. Freiya wasn’t used to being noticed.

“What’s a Jedi?”

Ket let out a chuckle as she gave her retort. She didn’t know any better, and neither did he. Every thing he said needed to be adjusted, and even when he thought he had tuned it, he’d simply have to say it again. But he didn’t mind, it was the first time he had felt relaxed in some time. His return to Coruscant had brought nothing by tension to the jedi master, and until this point, he had felt paranoid, constantly watching his back wherever he went. Now he was watching Freiya’s back, and becoming less and less concerned about his well being.

“Oh, I don’t mean that kind of force, I mean a magical force…”

He explained his tone enthusiastic as he tried to add a sense of wonder to his words.

“And the jedi… they are brave knights who can use this magic to help little girls just like yourself.”

A smile had permanently found itself on Ket’s face, and the soft swing of they’re hands, which had felt awkward at first, was now essential. And with every moment that passed, Ket could not seem to understand this feeling, it was as foreign to him, as it was to her.

“Do you like magic?”

“Are you a knight?!”

Freiya jumped up and down excitedly. He must have been. It explained everything. It was why she felt so secure around him. He was a knight that would protect her. It felt like a fairytale. When he mentioned magic, she practically squealed out of delight.

“I love magic!!”

Freiya looked back once more, seeing the orphanage fade into distance. It felt strange that she would never see it again, and felt even stranger that she wouldn’t miss anything about it. She returned her attention to Ket.

“Am I going to learn magic? Is that why the other kids thought I was strange?”

If there was only one thing in the galaxy that could make Ket melt, it was Freiya at this very moment.

“Yes, you are going to learn magic.”

He said with a smile. It was about all he could muster,

“Your going to be special Freiya.”