sith_happened | Office hours [all day]

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Office hours [all day]

After checking his office to make sure Ferus wasn't hiding in a closet or under his desk or something equally inane, Anakin flopped into his chair, consulted his notes briefly so he could remember which students he'd taught when, and waited for the first person to walk through the open into his office.

They couldn't have the coffee in his hands, by the way. Anakin needed that so he didn't tell everyone what he really thought.

[OOC: Up early so I don't forget. Off to Rennfest tomorrow, but should be back by midafternoon. SP=love!]

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Devra was quiet for a long moment, but Cassidy trusted this male and he made her feel safe. She had also told her that she was convinced that he was a Warlord Prince without a Jewel.

"Dharo is a safe place," she finally said. "It's always been a good territory and we live in a small, very close-knit village. But, even in a small place such as ours, you hear the stories. There are people, males, that are killing Queens, breaking witches. I won't have that happen to Cassidy. I won't." She was very fierce about it. "A Black Widow in our village is the one who suggested that if I sent Cassidy here she would be safe -- and she would learn things in this place that would make her stronger and keep her and her jewels intact."

Anakin nodded again. "What would you like her to learn?" he asked.

"Mr. Skywalker, Cassidy is a good girl and I know she'll be a good Queen. She isn't afraid of digging in and working hard and she knows intellectually that she can't trust everyone." She sighed. "Her father and her brother have always been doting and protective of her, but there's a difference between knowing how to get revenge on your brother and how to protect yourself. She embraces everyone right now like they will always be friends. I don't want to rob her of that compassion, but I want her to learn how to protect herself if someone tries to betray that." She gave him an uncertain smile.

"Cassidy has spoken so highly of you and her friend, Raven. Is there anything that you can do to help my daughter strengthen her shields and learn to defend herself? I know she hates the idea of hurting anyone, but I would rather she know how to fight than to lose my daughter, sir."

Anakin bit his lip at his thought it through. "I have questions," he said. "I am a Jedi and we have devote our lives to fighting the powers of the Dark Side. When your culture speaks of the Darkness, it makes me very deeply uncomfortable."

Now it was Devra's turn to think about things for a moment. "I can answer what questions that I can," she offered. "This is my first time out of our world. I am going to guess that Dark Side in your world possibly means the same thing as evil or tainted means to us?" No, she wasn't being dismissive, Devra was honestly a bit confused and willing to answer any questions she needed to if it would help Professor Skywalker decide if he could aid Cassidy.

She just wouldn't tell Burle about this conversation. Her husband was a bit protective of his girls.

He nodded. "Fear, anger, hatred, they are all linked to the Dark, and I cannot in good conscience encourage that in any student."

Devra nodded slowly. "I can understand that. I wouldn't want someone to teach Cassidy any of those things." She spread her hands out, thinking hard on how to explain as she spoke. "In our world, we all come from the Darkness. We are born from it knowing that the Darkness is our mother. We get our lives and our blood and our powers from it. We honor the Darkness by being honorable and taking care of both our people and any other people who reach out for help. We use our gifts wisely and honor the Blood we bear and the Jewels that we are gifted with by the Darkness. If you become tainted by evil and use your gifts to willfully harm people, you have turned against the Darkness and everything we are." She folded her hands. "There is no evil or purposeful harm in our Darkness, Mr. Skywalker. When we die, we all return to the Darkness. I'm not sure what happens after we die, but there are some people that believe we return to the Darkness to help future generations and add our power and souls to that."

Repeating "Darkness" over and over wasn't exactly the fast track to getting a former Sith Lord to agree to anything, not that Anakin revealed any of that on his face. He was concentrating hard on not twitching every time the word was used as it was.

"I need to consult first with my grandson before I can agree to anything," he said after a moment. "He has become quite close with the other Kaeleeran Queen here and might have a better idea about how our powers intermesh with yours."

And while Anakin trusted Ben's instincts, his own knowledge of the history of Sith societies that had been entirely steeped in the Dark Side were making him wary.

He smiled. "I wouldn't want to teach Cassidy without having a better grasp of how your society and her powers work, lest I steer her in the wrong direction."

Devra nodded, her shoulders drooping only slightly. "I can accept that, Mr. Skywalker. I know our society is very different from anyone else's if Cassidy's letters home are anything to judge by. What I do know is that Cassidy trusts you and thinks that you are a very good man and wise teacher." She gave him a faint smile. "She told her brother that you seemed like a Warlord Prince, but without the Jewel. I don't know if you realize what a compliment that is coming from a young Queen." She unfolded and folded her hands again. "Cassidy is not malicious and the idea that someone could use their Craft and Jewels to harm someone is something that she has a hard time believing. But I believed the Black Widow in our village enough that I sent my daughter here to be safe."

Devra was trying not to sound desperate, but she couldn't stand the idea of someone harming Cassidy and stripping her of her Jewels simply because she couldn't fight back. The urge to keep her daughter safe was an almost palpable thing with her.

"I appreciate that you are at least considering it, whether you agree to teach her or not."

And yes, Devra was hoping that he would end up agreeing. She wasn't sure that Cassidy respected any other male enough to take training from them.

Anakin's eyebrows arched up. "Do these Warlord Princes of yours react well to attempted emotional manipulation? I don't need compliments, and I don't need assurances that you believe she is never going to use her gifts to harm anyone. I need information."

Anakin had learned the hard way about following his immediate emotional instincts on things.

"Since your daughter is not returning home with you after this weekend, I believe I have the time to get what I need. No one will harm her here, and I am certainly not going to send an unprotected girl back into a volatile situation. I just want to be certain that I can teach her correctly, or steer her in the right direction if it turns out our powers aren't exactly translatable."

Devra stiffened noticably, offended. "The Warlord Princes and other males would know that we don't emotionally manipulate them and I wasn't trying to do that with you, Mr. Skywalker. I was repeating to you something my daughter had said about you because I thought you would like to know that one of your students holds you in high regard. I apologize that you thought otherwise. Some of us witches are known for saying exactly what we are thinking."

It was certainly clear that Devra didn't like having her honesty referred to as manipulation.

Even if she hadn't believed this was the best place for her daughter, she could well imagine what kind of fight she would have if she tried to make her leave right now.

"Another cultural misunderstanding," Anakin said, not looking at all worried about the look on her face. His day had been full of irritated people. "In my galaxy, if someone uses that many compliments, you look for the vibroblade they are aiming for your gut."

Oh the confusion just keeps mounting here, doesn't it? However, he had caught Devra's interest with something she had never heard of before.

"Vibroblade?"

~~*ignores the giggling of the writer who just went to such the wrong place about that item.*~~

Devra shook her head. "I don't give compliments unless I mean them, and all I know about you is what Cassidy thinks." Her lips twitched. "And what she has told her brother."

"Knife," Anakin clarified. "And really, compliments aren't necessary. I teach. The students listen or not."

Devra couldn't help but grin at that. "Well, since she hasn't started trying to use a sight shield to avoid her classes with you or put snakes or lizards in your desk, I'm going to assume that whatever you teach, she's paying attention to."

Devra knew her children. "And considering that I haven't heard one word out of her about letting her come home, I am going to trust that she is settling in well."

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Office hours [all day]

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