Master and Padawan

Master and Padawan
Date of Scene:	07 December 2023
Location:	Training Grounds - Jedi Temple - Coruscant
Synopsis:	Imoen and Varric practice Form III. Varric scolds Imoen for listening on a Council session, but promises her that he's kept her wishes in mind.
Cast of Characters:	Varric Sov, Imoen

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Varric Sov has posed:
The Jedi Temple.

Where the Jedi Order thrives on the planet of Coruscant. It's beautiful, treated like sacred ground by the rest of the planet. Here all members of the Jedi Order can come for sanctuary. For learning. For training. Even the youngest of the Order in the way of Initiates take their first steps into a beautiful brilliance that is the Light Side of the Force. Yet here, on the training grounds?

The Guardians of Peace hone themselves into capable stewards, like the edge of a knife that knows when to become unsheathed. Standing there in robes of brown and tan is Jedi Knight Varric Sov. Cloaked in a dark brown outer robe, blue eyes look around the training grounds, looking up at the sun as if to tell the time.

"Hm."

Quietly, he wonders the whereabouts of his Padawan. The hour is fast approaching when he requested her presence for additional training. Though if she happens to be late...he may have to just go find her. Yet, Varric was nothing if not extremely patient. One of the many reasons why young Imoen is a perfect fit as his Padawan.

Imoen has posed:
    For Imoen, she arrives about five minutes early to their training session on the grounds of the courtyard. For the rest of the galaxy, she arrives somewhere around ten minutes late. Considering the more well well-conditioned atmosphere of the area, she's garbed in a short-sleeved white tunic tucked into a brown sash and reaching about mid-thigh, black leggings, and a pair of thin and grippy brown shoes. Presumably, she's also wearing an exercise top beneath, in case she has to de-layer against the heat of exertion. She's presently working on fitting her brown hair into an economical messy ponytail, as she steps inside the courtyard and mumbles under her breath, "apologies, Master Sov. I came halfway here before forgetting my lightsaber."

    She finally manages to finish working on tying back her locks, and gives Varric a small grin - displaying one pronounced canine in the process. Not in threat, of course, so much as self-deprecating apology. "You know how it is." Approaching him, she withdraws said lightsaber hilt - a smooth metallic device only large enough for a single hand, and slightly curved at the bottom. "So, what's on the docket for today? Dueling? Target practice? Obstacle course? Sorry about that last one, by the way. I don't think I mentioned that." Using her significantly more advanced unarmed combat skill, she broke through some of the obstacles rather than go around them.

Varric Sov has posed:
Like a sentinel of the old ways, Varric stands there in patience....until, eventually, he can sense his padawan's presence. His eyes turn to look upon her when she arrives and apologizes to him for her tardiness. "It is alright, Imoen. Merely let it be a lesson to you that attention to detail is important." He winks at her, to signify she's not actually in trouble with him. "I do indeed. When I was a Padawan learner under Master Del-Byal, I forgot my lightsaber completely. As a reward...I was to run the drills from dusk until dawn."

He says it as though it's a fond memory.

"But...to the present." He looks at the lightsaber she brings to her hand. "Today, we will be practicing Form Three - Soresu. The Resilience Form and the Way of the Mynock. As we learn more of the Force, we learn that in combat, there are times when we must focus more on defense than attack. It's a technique to essentially outlast an opponent, until they make mistakes in their attacks from frustration or fatigue..and counterattacking upon notice of these mistakes."

He takes his lightsaber off of his hilt and ignites it, producing a brilliant violet blade of a powerful kyber crystal. "Are you ready to begin, Imoen?"

Imoen has posed:
    Imoen bows her head in acknowledgement, though she can't keep the grin from her face. "Of course, Master." She chuckles lightly to hear another story about when Varric was a Padawan himself, "I see where you learned to be a taskm-I mean surpassing teacher." So she says, though when not otherwise engaged, she can frequently be found actively improving herself in what fashion or another. Despite her chronic tardiness, she's often on task doing something, whether that be practicing her Teras Kasi, studying ancient aliens, exercising to improve her athleticism or flexibility, and even meditating. It's actually a bit of a problem that she leaves less time for actual Jedi teachings - from using the Force to working her lightsaber forms. The main reason she gives, when not acting facetious, is a lack of confidence in her abilities.

    Imoen breathes out a sigh. The sigh itself is all that's necessary to know she's not as comfortable in Soresu, compared to something fast-paced or tactical like Ataru or Makashi. She's much too accustomed to using all her body and movement during combat - the sort of thing often employed during her unarmed combat training. Reluctantly, she murmurs, "yes, Master." Closing her eyes a moment, she concentrates on the hilt of her weapon, and a vibrant yellow hue extends to shoto length. She opens her eyes and sets her feet, preparing to enter the proper stance.

    "I am ready."

Varric Sov has posed:
If Varric can say one thing about his teaching style, it's that he encourages and inspires his student to continue improving independently of him. To keep training, keep practicing, keep engaging in the training regiments that Varric has taught her and the lessons she learned as an initiate. These lessons can save a life, especially her own, and with lessons of Teras Kasi, of keeping up with the knowledge of the various alien cultures and customs. Knowledge and physicality.

Both are necessary.

Yet, Imoen needs to be focused. She makes time for everything /except/ direct Jedi teachings, like lightsaber forms and using the Force. But that will change. Even if slowy, certainly surely.

And Soresu will teach her focus and patience. She's used to high-velocity, fast-paced forms with high offensive capability like Makashi and Ataru. This will teach patience. He watches as her lightsaber ignites in that golden glow.

"Good. The opening stance is as follows:"

He twirls his lightsaber in his hand and he stands sideways, his strong foot behind him, his lightsaber balanced across his chest and pointed at her, with two fingers on the other hand extended towards her as well. "This stance makes it easy to parry and move the blade. Now...focus only on defense. Practice in moving the blade..." and he peforms basic blocks with the weapon. The high guard. The low parry...

Imoen has posed:
    Setting her jaw and putting on a serious face, Imoen focuses on what her Master may teach her. She's perhaps not the best student that ever was - skirting the edges of ending up in the service corp - but she takes to her practice with determination and intention. Copying her Master, she stands sideways with her right foot back, saber raised and pointed forward, other hand lifted near the humming yellow blade.

    Tentatively, she twirls the blade as if to block a blaster bolt or enemy saber, her ponytail trailing after every careful and meticulous movement. She mimics Varric to the best of her ability, going from high guards to low parries only a few moments behind. Eventually, she begins working up a sweat, the grips of her soles scraping across the courtyard ground, and her blue eyes focused on how the muscles of her arm interact with the shifting of the blade, and imagining how she might leverage momentum to stop a lightsaber in its tracks. She eases into rigorously drilled breathing exercises - breath in through her nose and out from her mouth. She rolls her wrist and snaps the blade around, re-orienting the angle of the blade and listening to it hum in conjunction with the subtle tides of the Force.

Varric Sov has posed:
"Good."

Varric watches her movements carefully, taking time to adjust her should the need arise, just a gentle touch of a finger or two and guiding her where she should be or where she should go. A lack of ocnfidence might drive Imoen's insecurity, but she's always worked hard. She's always rose to the occasion, whether it was by inch or by mile. Varric has always believed in her, from the day she first looked at him when he was a Padawan and claimed him as her master even as a youngling.

The strangest day in his life. Yet also the most foreboding.

As if it were by Tai Chi, Varric continues the slow motions. "Let the blade be firm in your hand. Let your body be strong, let you breathing be one of endurance. Slow and careful. You are in no rush." He advises.

"How does the form feel to you? How does it resonate?"

Imoen has posed:
    Much like many other training sessions since Varric selected her as his Padawan, Imoen commits to the task and strives towards perfection - even if such a thing is rarely achievable for her. She adjusts her stance and movements at his indication, a slight crease in her brow from all the concentration. She weaves the hilt of her saber through the motions of Soresu defense, taking a holistic perspective on how she might best leverage her strength or minimize the energy necessary. It's not always easy, as she unconsciously twitches to follow through or allow her wrist to slip the lightsaber into Makashi. Nevertheless, with her Master's assistance, she aims to impress. "It feels...challenging, Master. Like containing heat in a closed pot. I want to slip into the Circle of Shelter..." A Soresu move to deflect multiple blasters from multiple angles. "But I feel like I need to perform a Contentious Opportunity instead." A Makashi manuever to exploit an opponent's opening in their own defense.

    Breathing out a slightly frustrated sigh, her mind drifts to other things. Blue eyes flicker towards her Master, back to her blade, then her Master again. "Have you ever been to Jedha, Master? Or Dalna?" The tone of her voice seems to suggest an element of mischief she perhaps plans to commit, or already has.

Varric Sov has posed:
Soresu is indeed a concentration-heavy form. That's why most people don't like it. It has barely any offensive capability and it requires deep personalization to make it useful in a fight. "Primarily-" Varric begins. "This is a spectacular form for blaster deflection. The shelter of protection, as you said, is spectacular for blocking blasters from multiple angles. You did your studying beforehand, very good." Though as Imoen starts to shift her hand into a Makashi kind of grip, he carefully adjusts it with her, ironically, with his lightsaber, making contact with hers gently to remind her to keep her grip form.

"That is because of your instincts. You are used to speed. Velocity. You're personality is instinctive, reactive. While you're instincts serve you well, as Soresu in a duel is excellent to wear down your opponent and strike when they have an opening in their guard, it's unlikely to happen quickly, and this form will only prolongue the fight. Terrible for a fight you must win quickly, excellent for stalling and careful defense." Varric tells her softly.

"I have. A few times." To both worlds. "Tell me why your thoughts drift to the horizon instead of what is before you?"

Imoen has posed:
    Imoen smiles happily from the praise bestowed upon her humble self, enough that both canines peek from her upper lip. "It's also called the Way of the Mynock, and is the Jedi's response to blasters becoming popular throughout the galaxy." So she says, in a clear attempt to earn extra points from her instructor. She doesn't fully expect the contact of sabers, and overextends slightly, but quickly corrects to the way Varric intended. She nods slowly to the explanation of her preferences, "but it takes so much focus, Master. It's a wonder I won't go cross-eyed just staring at my opponent and waiting for them to pull the trigger..."

    Another series of glances later, she admits, "I met a Sephi in the Temple halls the other day, Master. Name of Navi. She's very pretty, and she possesses all the traits of her species. Including flexible ears. She says they aren't so flexible, but well, better than mine. And umm, anyway..." A dramatic pause, "she brought a relic to the council chambers. I...may have overheard in passing something about Jedha and Dalna alluding to the relic." Knowing her, 'overheard in passing' is a lot more passive phrasing than she probably was in gathering the information.

Varric Sov has posed:
Praise upon a Padawan is one of the joys of being a Master. To see the smile on the face of his student, Varric seems pleased of her happiness. "Mhm. Both are accurate. A Jedi possesses two weapons: a Lightsaber and the Force. Though a Jedi truly only needs the latter, the former is most helpful in the face of blaster fire, since deflecting blaster fire with the Force is a difficult skill to master." He remarks to Imoen. "Focus is the crucible in which all Jedi are born." Varric tells Imoen.

Though he hears that she has met a Sephi that she finds attractive. "Be careful of what your eyes see, my young Padawan. I'm happy you have made a friend." He remarks to her. Though he continues moving as she keeps talking, he eventually twirls his blade and sheathes it, turning to look upon her. "I know."

Which is far more terrifying than just telling him simply enough. "Evidently, you were caught eavesdropping on important Council matters that was not meant for your ears to hear. The Masters saw fit to tell me personally." He seems to lift his chin a little, implying that in this instance, she might actually be in trouble.

"If the relic was being discussed by the Jedi Council, the Masters have important reason to keep that information to themselves. Why do you seek this relic?"

Imoen has posed:
    "A crucible which sometimes feels like sand slipping through my fingers, Master. I will try to keep ahold of it, though it tries to wander from me. Especially when it comes to the mysteries and enigma of the Force." Imoen continues down her manuevers in the form of Soresu, one step and slight shift of saber at a time. It's not the sort of high-intensity workout she's generally more accustomed to, but rather a plodding, careful prospect in concentration and caution.

    There's a wince on her face, and she wills her saber to vanish back into its hilt before facing her Master more completely.

    "Was it so severe? Master Karina didn't seem too angry...but I guess she doesn't usually tend to show it." One of the Jedi Masters which attended the discussion, somehow noticed her and her friends spying by the door, and came out to give Imoen the task to find Navi a room as a means to send her off. "It's not so much the relic, as what it represents. I have been training in the Temple since I was eight. That's like, half my life. I've studied so much about alien cultures outside the Inner Rim, and yet rarely get the chance to meet any in person. Don't you think it would be exciting to go beyond the walls of the Temple, beyond Coruscant, and into the galaxy at large? Even Zeraph got to go explore for three whole years while I stayed behind here..."

Varric Sov has posed:
"The Force is difficult to master all the same. Over these next few weeks, you will notice a shift from the physical to a focus on the Force. You have always been talented at your agility, your strenght, and your bladework. But we need to make you skilled wit hthe Force. Not all foes will use mundane tactics and tricks against you." Varric explains, soft-spoken, yet behind every word is a heavy weight. He wants to build her up...even if it means breaking her down first.

But yes...she seems to have something of a point. "And you had thought I was not intending to take you beyond the walls of this Temple already?" Varric questions the young woman, seeing into her thought process, her trust in him. "Adventure. Excitement." Varric chuckles softly. "A Jedi does not crave these things, Imoen." He looks upon her. "Padawan Zeraph has different instruction." He reminds her.

There's a dramatic pause.

"I had already made plans to take you beyond the Temple. There things I may teach you inside these walls are fewer still. You will learn more out in the galaxy. I've work to accomplish and you are to follow in my footsteps. Though you ought to hope the Council doesn't attempt to bar me from doing so." He lifts his hand to try and rest it on her shoulder.

"You have much growing yet to do. Next time...*avoid* upsetting Master Karina. If you do so again, I will begin using my old Master's ways." Which by now, Imoen would know were brutal, but effective.

Imoen has posed:
    "Yes, Master. I aim to learn the most I can in the ways of the Force." Imoen turns her gaze aside with some measure of worry, "if only to help alleviate some of my...visions. They have gotten stronger of late, you know." She glances up, licking her lips. "Getting a proper quantity and quality of sleep has been a greater obstacle than only a few months ago." She runs a hand sheepishly behind her head, "the Archivists have woken me up a few times just this week when I found myself drifting off..." Her hand comes down, and her shoulders come with it, looking like a scolded puppy at the reminder of how Jedi perceive adventure. Hope and despondency and hope again appears on her expression, and she feels a hand come to rest on one shoulder.

    "Yes, Master. I shall be the very image of a perfect Padawan...so that I may earn practical guidance by a-" Here, she can't help but display anticipatory excitement, "journey across the galaxy." A pause, "for the sake of my own education through humble service, of course." Not for any delusions of grandeur or dreams of adventure. Clearly. Obviously. Hopefully discernably.

    "So. When do we intend to go on this...pilgrimage for knowledge?"