The Blood That Moves the Body [LE3]

[Juri Saizesh]

"I trust that, in time, the Force will show me how far I'll go." She smiled. "It is like I've been standing at the edge of the water, for as long as I can remember. Since having been on the run." Her fingers trailed down his body, resting on his torso.

"It calls me. And when the time arrives, I step boldly in with my decison."

[Daunt]

In turn, he began tracing a line along her arm. "No Force portents so far?"

[Juri Saizesh]

The tracing sent a small shiver of delight down her spine, as she laid on her side, looking to him. "The gift of foresight was never mine. Healing or robbing vitality, that is where my talents drew me." She quietly responded, grabbing a pillow and placing her head upon it.

"If the Force chooses to show me something, that may be an impetus."

[Daunt]

He looked at her from up close, continuing the caress with calm abandon. "What about Light and Dark? How have you been experiencing them here?"

[Juri Saizesh]

"The Darkness has been shrouding everything. Affecting my alchemical talismans, making them surge with noticeable power." She responded, a hand up to her hair pin, pulling it free. The wicked looking serpents seemed to glow with malice, before she slid it onto the bedside table.

"The Light is being stoked, though. Trying to remain a beacon, even in all this darkness."

[Daunt]

"Does it mean that we shouldn't ever choose one side?" He lloked at her attentively, not being able to resist the lure of her flowing hair.

[Juri Saizesh]

"No. One must always choose. Not choosing leads to being swept away. The Dark is... seductive. It grants power easily but it can destroy the soul." Juri rolled her neck from side to side, a content little sound as she stretched. "It can be used, but must be tempered. Too much and one can fall off the edge. And for myself... I would lose one of my greatest skills... to heal others through the Force."

She smiled at Daunt, a hand moving to caress his cheek. "But it is there if I need it. But always by choice."

[Daunt]

"With the Dark Side, how do you know how much is too much?" His fingers combed into her hair.

[Juri Saizesh]

She paused, pursing her lips. "When all you feel is hate and suffering and rage. When all you can think of is how to cause those weaker than you to submit, or how you can amass more power." Juri leaned into his touch, nestling in closer, a calf idly running over his.

"It corrupts you physically, too. You age much faster, you look twisted and consumed. Even as you feel that preternatural strength."

[Daunt]

"Then I guess I have a lot of wiggle room because I am in none of these conditions." It didn't make him relax. Was it what he was expected to become? Still, after a sigh he responded with her teases with a pull to get closer and with a kiss. "I think your healing abilities go beyond the Force."

[Juri Saizesh]

She smiled in the kiss, before curling up against his chest, an arm trailing at his bicep, moving along the strength of it. "You do? What makes you think that, Daunt?" She looked up to his face, before giving a quick peck at his jaw.

[Daunt]

"The restful sleep you bring, the order and calm to my thoughts. Flesh conditions have never been much of a problem for me, while what"s in the head... You know. " He sighed before seeking another kiss.

[Juri Saizesh]

"I know." She whispered back, a contented little sound as the kiss was sought. "You're not the only one that benefits. The nightmares stop when you're around." She was very quiet as she spoke, feeling safe so close to him.

[Daunt]

He hugged her, pulling over his side, but looking up, to the beams in the ceiling. "Sometimes I think it's wrong not to be facing them, at least in my case. I don't want to be running away from what's within me my whole life."

[Juri Saizesh]

She rolled with him as he turned, her smaller frame atop his broad one. Lying her head on his chest, breathing him in, her hands gently resting on his shoulders.

"There's a difference in facing your fears, and seeing the horrors of war reigned down on your people." Her voice leveled, trying to be comfortable. "I just want to stop hearing the screams. I wasn't even there, but Matron Soltzai was able to... conjure what happened."

[Daunt]

His close embrace made their body frames align. "Maybe a key to getting over that is making something senseless into something purposeful. Not an irreparable loss but a necessary sacrifice for something yet to emerge. Aged ways sometimes collapse because they are too resistant to change. It is how nature works." It was idle musing borne of the night, but as he spoke it he felt it made some sense.

[Juri Saizesh]

"I suppose that is what I am trying to do. To see what the Nightsister tradition will be built into." It was almost as if she was nuzzling into his chest, relaxing completely, feeling the peace of the moment.

"Changed, and risen from what was lost."

[Daunt]

"And what is the role of Nightbrothers in your vision?" He asked calmly, just with a tiny hint of tease that got hidden in a kiss on the bridge of her nose.

[Juri Saizesh]

"More than breeding stock, Daunt. Our way wasn't perfect. Perhaps only taking the daughters with the gift was a mistake. Maybe... the Nightcoven?" Her nose wrinkled as she smiled at the kiss. "How much talent was lost because part of our traditions? We should strive for being better than we were."

[Daunt]

"I guess in this there's no way back for me, to become but a breeding stock. So this one thing will have indeed to change." He chuckled. "I've just realised you've already been defying your upbringing by nurturing me into someone more than that."