Copper for the Charlatan

Salt in the Scrape

"Sir."

He made a point to stare after her, suspicious as to why she'd be on this hall yet again. She told herself if he was there next time she tried to do this favor it was a sign from the stars that she was to strike him down... half joking and half serious.

Kylo sighed, staring at her door, biting the inside of his cheek. After standing there for a minute, trying to decide what he was going to say, he stormed to the training room. He hesitated when the doors opened to reveal Ichara practicing blaster volleys against three droids. She hadn't noticed him, and he walked over to the control panel to turn off the program.

"I need to talk to you."

Already irked from the morning, she stomped over to the panel. "You really don't." She reached down to recommence the program and he grabbed her hand, stopping her.

"About last night..."

"Why the scavenger?" she blurted out "Do you have feelings for that desert girl?"

He yanked her to him "Say that again and those words will be your last." He released her roughly and she rubbed her wrist, scowling.

"You weren't the one horribly insulted last night! You don't get to treat me like that!"

"Nothing I could do would be more insulting than what you've already done to yourself." he retorted, looming over her.

"What is your fixation on him? Stars know this has nothing to do with me ."

He didn't answer.

"We should just spar. Come on."

As soon as he entered the practice floor behind her she whirled around and ignited her saber in one stroke. He stumbled as he went to block her attack, but quickly recovered. She swirled and struck aggressively, staying low to the ground- frustrating to someone of his height. He held his own, primarily defensive at first. The aggressive maneuvering and flitting required a lot of effort, and as he predicted, she soon tired. He came in with heavy swings, almost cutting her as she stumbled during a particularly low deflection. There was an undercurrent of tension as they fought, and each weren't entirely sure the other wasn't secretly attempting to cut their partner down. Panting, sweat clinging hair to her forehead, she raised her hands in defeat.

"The Ataru form. It's quite effective when your opponent isn't also strong with the force, as I'm sure you now know." he said condescendingly. "Who taught you?"

"I did. Force users were in low supply where I came from."

"And where is that?"

"Irrelevant." she shot back

"I'm tired of your vague answers. You've had your chance."

He narrowed his eyes and clawed his hand out toward her, splitting into her mind. She did her best to push back, but under the strength of his power she knew it would be impossible to hold him off forever.
I'll give him exactly what he wants, then.

Struggling to move whilst simultaneously keeping him at bay, she gritted her teeth, stepping close enough to reach him and grasp his outstretched hand. Suddenly he was in the fire- he could feel her fear, the pain exploding like fireworks at the edges of his vision. The smell of burnt flesh filled his nostrils, screams echoed around him. He looked up through her eyes, and a golden droid hand appeared from the smoke to pull her from the burning rubble.

It was so familiar.

He watched her run from an arms dealer's tent with a pair of stolen sabers, collapsing the building on him as she left. In the darkness of a cave, she activated the blades. The crystal inside squeaking and tinkling as it fractured, bleeding the blades from blue to a crimson hue.