ximi inbox

[hindsights]

// cal

« 𝙼𝚢 𝚗𝚊𝚖𝚎'𝚜 𝙲𝚊𝚕 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜--- 𝚈𝚎𝚊𝚑. 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝙲𝚊𝚕. »

TEXT ◆ AUDIO ◆ VIDEO

XIMILIA

Comments

[hindsights]

That's kind of the way it was for us. [ for jedi, yes, but pretty much all the children in the galaxy now. under the empire's iron-fist rule, there's little room for childhood.

or maybe there is for those with wealth and allegiance. ] What does it make me then?

[ a survivor, maybe? that's what merrin and he had called themselves. cal feels like a survivor more than he feels like a child, like a young man at the cusp of adulthood who held the fate of so many in his hands. ]

[doooooog]

[ It's funny, hearing a kid talk about childhood. By whatever definition Cal had for it -- innocence, being cared for, being shielded from the horrors of the world -- it wasn't necessarily one that Jake agreed with. Maybe that was a mark of age, or simply a mark of philosophical differences.

Regardless, Jake wouldn't push the kid to adopt his worldview over the one he came by through his own life. That wasn't his place, nor was it something Jake thought he was even capable of.

Instead, he meets Cal where he lives, shrugging honestly with a laugh. ]

It makes you you, kid. That's all anybody can ask you to be. There'll be a lot of yous before you're done growing. [ What had that old duke said once? Jake sprouts an extra arm, mussing Cal's hair with a quick noogie. ] And you never really stop growing, either.

[hindsights]

[ that ruffle of hair earns a laugh and cal nudges jake with his shoulder, to knock him off. not that cal cares about his looks, but he knows his hair will already be a nest without the extra ruffling. ] Who knows, maybe I'm done with my growth spurt?

[ he's already over six feet! but even so cal's aware that jake's not talking about physically. when the laughter dies down, he nods slightly. ] I just hope that the mes ahead do better for my friends.

[doooooog]

[ One thing about Jake; no matter how tall the kids in his life get, he could always get taller. A nice perk of being perpetually avuncular. ]

I hope so too, kid. [ For Jake's friends, as well. The old dog's way of expressing concern, albeit indirectly. He didn't want to embarrass the boy, not when he was in that ripe age where boyhood was a not-distant memory, and adulthood was rapidly approaching. ] Why don't you at least try to get a little sleep? My skin folds make a pretty great blanket, and still a long ways back to the village. You're gonna need your rest.

🎀? or on yours?

[hindsights]

[ after the conversation, cal does find himself more tired than before. the wind's no longer pushing them about, they're cruising steadily. it almost reminds him of the stinger mantis floating throat space; almost.

but the offer to sleep earns a nod. that's a victory when dealing with a teenage boy, if anything. ] I'll rest but I gotta draw the line at skin folds, I think.

[ he offers a wry smile to the dog-turned-dragon-turned--- turned another dog on a dragon? ] Thanks for everything, Jake.