STAR WARS: Knights of the Old Republic

Chapter 28

After their visit to the Czerka camp, Jolee had lead Venar and Bastila back to his hut. He had explained that the particular part of the Shadowlands they needed to go to was especially dangerous at this time of night. They would get some much needed rest and head out in the morning.

Jolee had started a fire outside his hut and had made a mushbloom stew. He had assured them that it was a delicacy of the planet, yet Venar found them to be a bit of... an acquired taste. Nevertheless, the three Jedi sat around the fire, eating and getting to know each other.

Jolee, they discovered, could talk a lot. Venar surmised this was likely due to the hermit not having had a meaningful interaction with any others of his kind in quite awhile. He would often ramble and prattle on about some of his various adventures back as a young Jedi. He dropped names and locations as if they should know exactly what he was talking about. Of course, they didn't.

"Tell me, is Master Vrook still a member of the Jedi Council?"

"He is," Bastila said. Finally, a name they recognized.

"Fah! I bet he's still got a lightsaber up his rear!"

"Even back then huh?" Venar smirked as he listened to this old seasoned veteran talking trash about one of the Order's esteemed Masters.

"I swear the Jedi found him that way! So judgy! You should've seen his face when he found out about Nayama," he said shaking his head and chuckling.

"Nayama?"

"Oh, yes... Nayama," he said his eyes suddenly growing distant. "She was my wife. I lost her a long time ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Bastila said.

"You broke the Jedi Code?" Venar asked incredulously.

"Now, don't you go getting all judgy on me," Jolee said defensively. "I've never been a big fan of the Jedi's take on love and attachment. Love leads to the dark side... bah! What do they know? I found love! I got married! ...And now I'm older than most of the human Council members at least. Haven't become a Sith yet!"

"What happened?" Venar asked.

"Eh... that's a story for another time... I don't really feel like talking about that right now and to be frank, all this yammering has tired me out." He stood up and headed towards the door of his hut. "When you're ready I made the floor as comfortable as possible. I had a few extra pillows I traded some mushbloom for awhile back. You can use them."

He started back towards the door again before adding, "Oh, but don't get too comfortable now. Wouldn't want your Jedi Masters worrying you've gone to the Dark Side... hehe..." He raised an eyebrow and glanced back and forth between his two visitors.

"I... I don't!" Before Bastila could finish her protest to Jolee's crude joke he had closed the door and disappeared inside.

She sighed and looked over at Venar sitting across the fire from her. He met her gaze and she knew she could no longer hide from the subject she knew he so desperately wanted to discuss.

"Is it really that obvious?" She asked.

"I don't think so," he said. "I don't think any of the others have caught on."

"Venar... we need to keep it that way..."

"You're conflicted," he said more as a statement than a question.

"Yes," she said looking down at her feet, unable to meet his gaze. "I... I admit... I... I'm attracted to you... It wasn't always that way... Maybe it's the bond we share... or I don't know. It's been growing for some time."