A bar in Baltimore- Wednesday

[notconflicted]

Sia didn't typically cop to things like needing a break, but privately at least she had to admit that the last few days here had been really helpful. Turns out that being surrounded by war and politics all the time might be detrimental, especially when you didn't actually want to be doing it. Who knew.

Well, okay, Atton knew, and had been telling her that for a while, but that was not the point.

She was out with him tonight, hitting up some bar off island, and that felt really needed, too. For a lot of reasons. So once they got there and found a table, Sia asked, "So what drink are you having me try tonight?"

[For Atton!]

Comments

[notconflicted]

"Do I want to know?" Sia asked.

[suitably_heroic]

"She's dead and buried now."

And it was probably best not to get into the impossible shadow of Meetra Surik.

[notconflicted]

"I'm going to take that as a no," she said slowly. She knew who he meant, but no details, so as far as she was concerned it was up to him.

[suitably_heroic]

"It's complicated," Atton said, after a long pause. "Turns out the Force can do a lot of funny things, not just juggle lightsabers and heal people."

[notconflicted]

"Funny things that are worse than a bond?" she said.

[suitably_heroic]

"Funny things with bonds," Atton said slowly. "She made them very easily. Clicked with people, just like that. And after what happened to her at Malachor... she started to be able to tap into other people's Force connections that way."

[notconflicted]

"Such as yours?" Sia said, watching him carefully.

[suitably_heroic]

"Yeah," Atton said, after a moment. "It helped her kickstart her own connection to the Force again, I think."

[notconflicted]

"So what's the bad part?" she asked.

[suitably_heroic]

"'Cause it's a fucked up, weird thing to do," Atton said slowly. "And because it made me throw up when I felt her die."

Oh.

He hadn't been planning to say that.

[notconflicted]

Sia wasn't surprised he had said it, really.

"I'm sorry," she said, unthinkingly reaching for his hand.

[suitably_heroic]

"Sometimes I think nobody should have something like the Force," Atton said. "We can't handle it."

But he let her take his hand without comment.

[notconflicted]

"And the ones who can handle it tend to be prone to getting screwed over or killed by those who can't." She'd thought a lot about that the last couple days. "Unfortunately we don't get a choice."

[suitably_heroic]

"Kreia thought we did," Atton said. A pause. "Though it was Kreia, so she might have been lying about it."

[notconflicted]

"You can ignore it, I think. At least for a while," Sia said. "But it seems like there always comes a time when you can't anymore."

[suitably_heroic]

"Meetra became a void in the Force. She lost it completely," Atton said. "Kreia wanted to use that to destroy it."

[notconflicted]

Sia blinked. "But... it's the Force. You can't just get rid of it entirely."

[suitably_heroic]

"Kreia thought she could. Or wanted us to think she could," Atton said, reaching for his glass. He needed another sip of alcohol. "And considering the way Meetra lost the Force... I don't know. Maybe."

[notconflicted]

Sia had a ton of ideas about that, but it wasn't exactly the time. In fact, she signaled the waitress for a second round, just in case. "So what happened?"

[suitably_heroic]

"Meetra killed Kreia on Malachor, ran off to the Unknown Regions, and got her stupid ass killed," Atton said, heaving a sigh. "So much for that."

[notconflicted]

"I wish that had a better ending," Sia said, and meant it.

[suitably_heroic]

"But we rarely get one, do we?" Atton said philosophically, motioning the waiter for another drink. "You did, this time. Let's drink to that."

[notconflicted]

"To lucking out for once," Sia said, taking a drink.

[suitably_heroic]

"And not in a bad way," Atton agreed, downing the rest of his drink. "Try not to get stabbed again, all right?"

[notconflicted]

"I always try, but I don't promise anything anymore," Sia said, and paused. "A lot of it's fuzzy, but I remember thinking you'd be upset with me for dying right after I told you I wouldn't."