(no subject)
[Millitimed to last night.]
It's been a rough day.
This is evidenced by a pair of boots flying across room 117. "Kriff it all!!!" The door slams shut behind an angry Corran Horn.
She's a traitor to justice. After all we've been through and seen together... He shakes his head angrily. She doesn't understand. She didn't work his case, Inyri and Wes are not her squadmates, she can't know what he's truly capable of!!
He pauses in his mental rant to mentally swat at a thin black thread attaching itself to his consciousness. why have things like this been happening so much lately? And who is trying to get in my head so badly?
Shaking his head in frustration, Corran flops onto his bed, and his eyelids suddenly feel as though someone parked a Mon Cal cruiser on them. I guess I'm more tired than I thought.
No sooner does he finish that thought than he falls asleep...
-------------------------------------------------------------
Bright lights and colorful characters are all around him. He blinks. I know this place, but... The government cleaned up Treasure Ship Row before I dropped in a couple years back. He looks down. And why am I back in my CorSec uniform?
Intuitively, Corran reaches into his pocket--and to his surprise, finds a small scrap of flimsi there. On it, a single sentence is scribbled in vaguely familiar handwriting:
You can find me at the Hideaway--V.H.
Corran frowns. He's not sure who 'V.H.' is, but he remembers the Hideaway well enough. Used to use it as a setup point for informant meetings. What the Sith is going on here?
He strolls into the dingy, dark tapcaf. The haze in the air was always a boon--made it almost impossible to see the faces of anyone in the bar. Weaving his way through, he follows his gut instinct to a dark corner booth where a man slightly taller than himself is seated, wearing a heavy cloak that shields his identity. Corran slides into the booth across from him, and nods to the figure. "Found you."
The figure's posture straightens slightly, and a moment passes before he speaks. "Then you got my note."
Corran's blood runs cold, then hot. I know that voice... It can't be. It's been over a dozen years since... He swallows hard before attempting to respond. "I... uh..." Words fail him as his expression slowly morphs from slack-jawed astonishment to an ecstatic, lopsided grin. "I didn't expect... I mean, the last time I saw you..."
"I know. Bossk." The man pulls off his cloak, revealing the all-too-familiar features of Valin "Hal" Horn. He reaches out and claps Corran on the shoulder affectionately, a similar grin of his own stretching across his face. "Sithspawn, it's great to see you, Corran."
Corran stiffens slightly at his father's touch, then begins trembling slightly. "Hal--Dad--listen, I'm sorry. That night--I wasn't fast enough, I--"
"Corran." His tone stops Corran cold. "That night was twelve years ago. You were on the other side of the room. There wasn't a thing you could do." He places his other hand on Corran's other shoulder and locks eye contact. "Do you understand?"
"Dad--no, there had to have been a way..." He shakes his head adamantly.
"Not one that wouldn't have involved you getting shot as well. You'd have been no good to anyone dead, and then who would have been out there to hunt down that stanging Trandoshan?" Hal shakes his head. "Corran--it wasn't your fault. You were right where I needed you, and..." deep breath, "Honestly, you were there as I was dying. I didn't die alone because you were there with me. And while I'd rather have gone out peacefully as an old man, at least you were there."
Corran fights back tears. "I did bring him in, you know. And Loor... kriffing Loor. He let him go." His words turn into a snarl. "He dropped the charges on the basis that as a Trandoshan, he dind't have the manual dexterity for that particular blaster. Big clumsy fingers, big clumsy shooter." He shakes his head. "I know he did it just to rile me, but..."
Hal sets his jaw. "You know, I never did like him. Always thought he was a bumbling meddler who could sooner kriff up an investigation than oversee a proper one." He drops his hands from Corran's shoulders and relaxes in his seat.
The comment elicits a snort from Corran. "Yeah, that's about right. Vaping moron practically ran me out of CorSec. Had me on the run for a while, too... but he's dead now."
"Not you, was it?"
"Nope. Diric Wessiri did the universe that particular favor." Corran takes a deep breath. "This... I thought at first it was a vision, but now... I'm dreaming. I know I have to be. Visions... they feel different."
Hal chuckles. "Ah, good to see that you did get the intelligence that came down through the Horn line. Sometimes your mother and I were given reason to wonder..."
"You mean the Halcyon line."
Hal laughs outright. "So you did get that message I left with Whistler. I wondered how long it would take."
Corran blushes slightly. "A little longer than I'd like to admit, but it was several years after I discovered it that I found the right time to listen to it. Back when my wife was kidnapped."
Hal stares in disbelief for a moment at Corran before bursting into a glowing grin. "A wife??? You actully found a woman who'd put up with you enough to marry you? Next thing I know, you'll be telling me you two even had children. What's her name? What's she like?"
The younger Horn takes a deep breath and smiles uncertainly. "Yes, to both of the first two questions. As far my wife..." He bites his lip. "Well, her name's Mirax. Mirax Terrik."
Hal blinks, and his jaw slowly drops. "Terrik... Not as in Booster Terrik?"
Corran nods hesitantly. "The same. I mean, I know he wasn't--"
"Corran." Hal cuts him off and raises a hand to forestall further comment. "Tell me just two things. One: Is she at least as smart and tenacious as her father?"
"More so. What's the second one?"
Deep breath. "And you're happy?"
"More than I've ever been."
Hal nods. "Then I have no reason to complain or disapprove." Pause, and then the smile returns. "And you said something about children?"
Corran laughs aloud and slaps the table. "Yeah, but we're gonna need a drink for this one." He calls a waitress over and orders a bottle of Whyren's Reserve and a couple glasses. Pouring the drinks, then raising them in a toast, Corran proudly toasts, "To Valin Horn, my 7-month old son."
Hal freezes. "No... you didn't." His eyes are wide, and that could be the beginning of a tear in the left one as Corran nods with a smile. Wiping it away, Hal's mouth opens and closes. "I... I'm speechless, Corran."
"What, you thought I'd name him Booster?" Corran snorts and shakes his head. "Even Mirax agreed that was a bad idea."
"Smart girl, then." He takes a long sip of the Whyren's, then shakes his head. "Stang, that tastes good. So tell me... how'd you meet her? I'm going to assume Booster didn't exactly introduce you..."
Corran chuckles. "Yeah, he's still not too fond of the idea. But no, actually. I met her through my squadron CO, Wedge Antilles. He's a good friend, and quite the Hero now in the New Republic."
Hal blinks. "Hold on, there's a lot of data in that sentence to digest. First off, Antilles. That name sounds familiar..."
Corran nods. "The Gus Treta case. He was the son that survived. Booster took him in..."
"Right, right, I remember now. I tried to get them to cut him some slack on that point--got him down to 5 years instead of the 8 the judge had been favoring." Hal nods. "But now, you called him your CO--did you join the Imperial Navy at some point?"
Wince. "Not in the lifetime of a million stars. I, ah, actually ran off and joined the Rebellion."
Hal slaps the table and pours himself another glass of Whyren's. "Good man! I always hoped at some point someone would overturn Palpatine's regime." He freezes. "You guys did win, right?"
Corran breathes a long sigh of relief. I wonder if he knows how important to me his approval right there is... "Yes. I was part of the top X-Wing squadron in the whole Alliance, hand-chosen by Wedge. Four, five years after you'd passed on. Spent the first couple of those still in CorSec--"
"They assigned you to work with Wessiri permanently, right?"
Gaping occurs. "How... how did you know?"
Hal shrugs. "Requested it. If anything had happened to me. Y'see, just before you came out of the Academy, I worked with Gil Bastra on the Red Gundark bombing, and she was assisting him. She impressed me with her analysis and interrogation skills--not to mention her patience. I figured pairing her skills with your instincts and determination...and it seemed to work okay on the trial cases we put you two on." He shrugs again and smiles lopsidedly. "How'd that work out?"
"Still best friends. Still keeps me on a leash...when she can." He swallows hard.
The elder Horn catches the slight shift in Corran's attitude. "Something happen involving her?"
Corran deflates noticably and slumps in his seat. "Never could slip one past you." He takes a deep breath. "Um... you remember the Thyne case, right, Dad?"
Hal scowls. "Zekka Thyne? Patches, with the diamond eyes? Give me some good news and tell me one of his fellow spicers on Kessel killed him."
Corran nervously rubs his neck. Trying to explain Milliways is probably not the best idea right now... "Not quite. His sentence was... truncated. For a military operation the New Republic had going that helped free Imperial Center. But he..." Corran bites his lips and swallows hard, taking a sip of Whyren's before continuing. "Well, see, one of the new members we recruited to fill a vacancy in the squadron... she'd been Thyne's lover. And became a close friend of mine, and Thyne... went away. For a long time. A good decade or so."
"Okay... how does this relate to Iella?"
"Well... he showed back up the other week. In a bar. And he's been wreaking complete havoc on Inyri's life ever since he showed back up. And the other day..." Corran shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "He... came looking for me. And... there was a fight." He drops his gaze to a scratch on the table. "Iella and I had an argument after she broke us apart."
"Corran." Hal appraises him carefully. "Please, tell me..."
"No, I did. I let him antagonize me into it." He takes a deep breath. "And... I don't know. I may have drawn on my anger to give me certain... advantages."
Hal gapes. "Son... you didn't. I cn already tell you've had Jedi training, so please don't tell me you misused it."
Corran just stares at the table in silence.
"Corran..." His father takes a long sigh. "Why would you allow yourself to do that? You didn't have that problem when we brought him in..." Realization dawns. "You let it get personal. It was no longer professional, about just keeping the peace with you. It was about revenge."
Corran looks up into the horrified gaze of his father. "You know... I thought maybe you'd understand. What with your rivalry with Booster and all." He draws himself up into a ball on his side of the booth.
Hal sighs. "It wasn't personal, Corran. He was a hell of a man to catch, but it was just professional. I still respect him, and I'm dead, Corran." He shakes his head slowly and sighs deeply. "You can not let it get personal. It will tear you apart and twist you to the Dark Side. If you don't break that habit now, it's going to lead to some serious problems. Sithspit, Corran..." He bites his lip. "You've got a wife and kid. Think about the example it'll set, the chance you'll lose them if you flip."
Corran's head jolts up. "I don't think I could handle that."
Hal nods. "Exactly. You have to detach yourself from the Thyne thing, and any other personal vendettas you have. Even if she is your friend and squadmate. You can't let your emotions get involved. You couldn't do it as a cop, you definitely can't do it as a Jedi. Do you understand?"
Dejected, Corran hangs his head. "Yes. Yes I do."
Hal nods solemnly. "Good. Now...," he smirks, "war stories. Who've you met, where've you been... I'm eager to hear all about it."
Corran grins slightly, and begins spinning tales. Borleias, Coruscant, Lusankya, Thyferra, Bilbringi, the Invids... Plenty of laughter and suspense follow, and it's just like old times.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Finally, though, hours later, Hal looks down at his chronometer. "Wow... quite some adventures you've had." He nods and wipes tears of laughter out of his eyes and stands up. "Time to go."
Corran nods, and his smile fades as he bites his lip. "Uh, Dad?" He fidgets nervously. "There's... there's one more question I have to ask you."
Hal spreads his arms in an open gesture. "Fire away, Corran."
Deep breath. "Uh...How'm I doing? Did... Did I do it right?"
Hal pauses to consider his son. He offers a hand to pull Corran up, then gathers him into a hug. "Son... you can't do it wrong in my eyes. You are my son, and I will always be proud of you." He holds him at arms' length and locks gazes with him. "However... you have done better than I ever had a right to expect. You are a hero, Corran. I imagine I'm a long way from the only one who's proud of you--your wife, commnding officer, and Iella are all probably high on that list, as well." He leans in conspiratorially.
"But none of 'em are prouder than me."
-------------------------------------------------------------
He awakes with a start. "Dad? Dad!"
Corran glances around the room frantically. Realizing where he is, he tries to go back to sleep... to no avail.
It's only then that Corran realizes his cheeks are wet with tears. I miss you and love you, Dad.
And I wish you were here.
It's been a rough day.
This is evidenced by a pair of boots flying across room 117. "Kriff it all!!!" The door slams shut behind an angry Corran Horn.
She's a traitor to justice. After all we've been through and seen together... He shakes his head angrily. She doesn't understand. She didn't work his case, Inyri and Wes are not her squadmates, she can't know what he's truly capable of!!
He pauses in his mental rant to mentally swat at a thin black thread attaching itself to his consciousness. why have things like this been happening so much lately? And who is trying to get in my head so badly?
Shaking his head in frustration, Corran flops onto his bed, and his eyelids suddenly feel as though someone parked a Mon Cal cruiser on them. I guess I'm more tired than I thought.
No sooner does he finish that thought than he falls asleep...
-------------------------------------------------------------
Bright lights and colorful characters are all around him. He blinks. I know this place, but... The government cleaned up Treasure Ship Row before I dropped in a couple years back. He looks down. And why am I back in my CorSec uniform?
Intuitively, Corran reaches into his pocket--and to his surprise, finds a small scrap of flimsi there. On it, a single sentence is scribbled in vaguely familiar handwriting:
You can find me at the Hideaway--V.H.
Corran frowns. He's not sure who 'V.H.' is, but he remembers the Hideaway well enough. Used to use it as a setup point for informant meetings. What the Sith is going on here?
He strolls into the dingy, dark tapcaf. The haze in the air was always a boon--made it almost impossible to see the faces of anyone in the bar. Weaving his way through, he follows his gut instinct to a dark corner booth where a man slightly taller than himself is seated, wearing a heavy cloak that shields his identity. Corran slides into the booth across from him, and nods to the figure. "Found you."
The figure's posture straightens slightly, and a moment passes before he speaks. "Then you got my note."
Corran's blood runs cold, then hot. I know that voice... It can't be. It's been over a dozen years since... He swallows hard before attempting to respond. "I... uh..." Words fail him as his expression slowly morphs from slack-jawed astonishment to an ecstatic, lopsided grin. "I didn't expect... I mean, the last time I saw you..."
"I know. Bossk." The man pulls off his cloak, revealing the all-too-familiar features of Valin "Hal" Horn. He reaches out and claps Corran on the shoulder affectionately, a similar grin of his own stretching across his face. "Sithspawn, it's great to see you, Corran."
Corran stiffens slightly at his father's touch, then begins trembling slightly. "Hal--Dad--listen, I'm sorry. That night--I wasn't fast enough, I--"
"Corran." His tone stops Corran cold. "That night was twelve years ago. You were on the other side of the room. There wasn't a thing you could do." He places his other hand on Corran's other shoulder and locks eye contact. "Do you understand?"
"Dad--no, there had to have been a way..." He shakes his head adamantly.
"Not one that wouldn't have involved you getting shot as well. You'd have been no good to anyone dead, and then who would have been out there to hunt down that stanging Trandoshan?" Hal shakes his head. "Corran--it wasn't your fault. You were right where I needed you, and..." deep breath, "Honestly, you were there as I was dying. I didn't die alone because you were there with me. And while I'd rather have gone out peacefully as an old man, at least you were there."
Corran fights back tears. "I did bring him in, you know. And Loor... kriffing Loor. He let him go." His words turn into a snarl. "He dropped the charges on the basis that as a Trandoshan, he dind't have the manual dexterity for that particular blaster. Big clumsy fingers, big clumsy shooter." He shakes his head. "I know he did it just to rile me, but..."
Hal sets his jaw. "You know, I never did like him. Always thought he was a bumbling meddler who could sooner kriff up an investigation than oversee a proper one." He drops his hands from Corran's shoulders and relaxes in his seat.
The comment elicits a snort from Corran. "Yeah, that's about right. Vaping moron practically ran me out of CorSec. Had me on the run for a while, too... but he's dead now."
"Not you, was it?"
"Nope. Diric Wessiri did the universe that particular favor." Corran takes a deep breath. "This... I thought at first it was a vision, but now... I'm dreaming. I know I have to be. Visions... they feel different."
Hal chuckles. "Ah, good to see that you did get the intelligence that came down through the Horn line. Sometimes your mother and I were given reason to wonder..."
"You mean the Halcyon line."
Hal laughs outright. "So you did get that message I left with Whistler. I wondered how long it would take."
Corran blushes slightly. "A little longer than I'd like to admit, but it was several years after I discovered it that I found the right time to listen to it. Back when my wife was kidnapped."
Hal stares in disbelief for a moment at Corran before bursting into a glowing grin. "A wife??? You actully found a woman who'd put up with you enough to marry you? Next thing I know, you'll be telling me you two even had children. What's her name? What's she like?"
The younger Horn takes a deep breath and smiles uncertainly. "Yes, to both of the first two questions. As far my wife..." He bites his lip. "Well, her name's Mirax. Mirax Terrik."
Hal blinks, and his jaw slowly drops. "Terrik... Not as in Booster Terrik?"
Corran nods hesitantly. "The same. I mean, I know he wasn't--"
"Corran." Hal cuts him off and raises a hand to forestall further comment. "Tell me just two things. One: Is she at least as smart and tenacious as her father?"
"More so. What's the second one?"
Deep breath. "And you're happy?"
"More than I've ever been."
Hal nods. "Then I have no reason to complain or disapprove." Pause, and then the smile returns. "And you said something about children?"
Corran laughs aloud and slaps the table. "Yeah, but we're gonna need a drink for this one." He calls a waitress over and orders a bottle of Whyren's Reserve and a couple glasses. Pouring the drinks, then raising them in a toast, Corran proudly toasts, "To Valin Horn, my 7-month old son."
Hal freezes. "No... you didn't." His eyes are wide, and that could be the beginning of a tear in the left one as Corran nods with a smile. Wiping it away, Hal's mouth opens and closes. "I... I'm speechless, Corran."
"What, you thought I'd name him Booster?" Corran snorts and shakes his head. "Even Mirax agreed that was a bad idea."
"Smart girl, then." He takes a long sip of the Whyren's, then shakes his head. "Stang, that tastes good. So tell me... how'd you meet her? I'm going to assume Booster didn't exactly introduce you..."
Corran chuckles. "Yeah, he's still not too fond of the idea. But no, actually. I met her through my squadron CO, Wedge Antilles. He's a good friend, and quite the Hero now in the New Republic."
Hal blinks. "Hold on, there's a lot of data in that sentence to digest. First off, Antilles. That name sounds familiar..."
Corran nods. "The Gus Treta case. He was the son that survived. Booster took him in..."
"Right, right, I remember now. I tried to get them to cut him some slack on that point--got him down to 5 years instead of the 8 the judge had been favoring." Hal nods. "But now, you called him your CO--did you join the Imperial Navy at some point?"
Wince. "Not in the lifetime of a million stars. I, ah, actually ran off and joined the Rebellion."
Hal slaps the table and pours himself another glass of Whyren's. "Good man! I always hoped at some point someone would overturn Palpatine's regime." He freezes. "You guys did win, right?"
Corran breathes a long sigh of relief. I wonder if he knows how important to me his approval right there is... "Yes. I was part of the top X-Wing squadron in the whole Alliance, hand-chosen by Wedge. Four, five years after you'd passed on. Spent the first couple of those still in CorSec--"
"They assigned you to work with Wessiri permanently, right?"
Gaping occurs. "How... how did you know?"
Hal shrugs. "Requested it. If anything had happened to me. Y'see, just before you came out of the Academy, I worked with Gil Bastra on the Red Gundark bombing, and she was assisting him. She impressed me with her analysis and interrogation skills--not to mention her patience. I figured pairing her skills with your instincts and determination...and it seemed to work okay on the trial cases we put you two on." He shrugs again and smiles lopsidedly. "How'd that work out?"
"Still best friends. Still keeps me on a leash...when she can." He swallows hard.
The elder Horn catches the slight shift in Corran's attitude. "Something happen involving her?"
Corran deflates noticably and slumps in his seat. "Never could slip one past you." He takes a deep breath. "Um... you remember the Thyne case, right, Dad?"
Hal scowls. "Zekka Thyne? Patches, with the diamond eyes? Give me some good news and tell me one of his fellow spicers on Kessel killed him."
Corran nervously rubs his neck. Trying to explain Milliways is probably not the best idea right now... "Not quite. His sentence was... truncated. For a military operation the New Republic had going that helped free Imperial Center. But he..." Corran bites his lips and swallows hard, taking a sip of Whyren's before continuing. "Well, see, one of the new members we recruited to fill a vacancy in the squadron... she'd been Thyne's lover. And became a close friend of mine, and Thyne... went away. For a long time. A good decade or so."
"Okay... how does this relate to Iella?"
"Well... he showed back up the other week. In a bar. And he's been wreaking complete havoc on Inyri's life ever since he showed back up. And the other day..." Corran shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "He... came looking for me. And... there was a fight." He drops his gaze to a scratch on the table. "Iella and I had an argument after she broke us apart."
"Corran." Hal appraises him carefully. "Please, tell me..."
"No, I did. I let him antagonize me into it." He takes a deep breath. "And... I don't know. I may have drawn on my anger to give me certain... advantages."
Hal gapes. "Son... you didn't. I cn already tell you've had Jedi training, so please don't tell me you misused it."
Corran just stares at the table in silence.
"Corran..." His father takes a long sigh. "Why would you allow yourself to do that? You didn't have that problem when we brought him in..." Realization dawns. "You let it get personal. It was no longer professional, about just keeping the peace with you. It was about revenge."
Corran looks up into the horrified gaze of his father. "You know... I thought maybe you'd understand. What with your rivalry with Booster and all." He draws himself up into a ball on his side of the booth.
Hal sighs. "It wasn't personal, Corran. He was a hell of a man to catch, but it was just professional. I still respect him, and I'm dead, Corran." He shakes his head slowly and sighs deeply. "You can not let it get personal. It will tear you apart and twist you to the Dark Side. If you don't break that habit now, it's going to lead to some serious problems. Sithspit, Corran..." He bites his lip. "You've got a wife and kid. Think about the example it'll set, the chance you'll lose them if you flip."
Corran's head jolts up. "I don't think I could handle that."
Hal nods. "Exactly. You have to detach yourself from the Thyne thing, and any other personal vendettas you have. Even if she is your friend and squadmate. You can't let your emotions get involved. You couldn't do it as a cop, you definitely can't do it as a Jedi. Do you understand?"
Dejected, Corran hangs his head. "Yes. Yes I do."
Hal nods solemnly. "Good. Now...," he smirks, "war stories. Who've you met, where've you been... I'm eager to hear all about it."
Corran grins slightly, and begins spinning tales. Borleias, Coruscant, Lusankya, Thyferra, Bilbringi, the Invids... Plenty of laughter and suspense follow, and it's just like old times.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Finally, though, hours later, Hal looks down at his chronometer. "Wow... quite some adventures you've had." He nods and wipes tears of laughter out of his eyes and stands up. "Time to go."
Corran nods, and his smile fades as he bites his lip. "Uh, Dad?" He fidgets nervously. "There's... there's one more question I have to ask you."
Hal spreads his arms in an open gesture. "Fire away, Corran."
Deep breath. "Uh...How'm I doing? Did... Did I do it right?"
Hal pauses to consider his son. He offers a hand to pull Corran up, then gathers him into a hug. "Son... you can't do it wrong in my eyes. You are my son, and I will always be proud of you." He holds him at arms' length and locks gazes with him. "However... you have done better than I ever had a right to expect. You are a hero, Corran. I imagine I'm a long way from the only one who's proud of you--your wife, commnding officer, and Iella are all probably high on that list, as well." He leans in conspiratorially.
"But none of 'em are prouder than me."
-------------------------------------------------------------
He awakes with a start. "Dad? Dad!"
Corran glances around the room frantically. Realizing where he is, he tries to go back to sleep... to no avail.
It's only then that Corran realizes his cheeks are wet with tears. I miss you and love you, Dad.
And I wish you were here.