lightthedarkness | Empatheias Inbox

[His arms going around the girl in a warm brace, Obi-Wan held her close in a comforting manner. Usagi was not only a good friend, but was somewhat like the daughter he would never have. Seeing her in so much pain was difficult, especially considering her selfless and typically bubbly nature.]

I know. But what’s done is done, and the land will heal in time. We planted some new trees and shrubs.

Did... anyone else figure it out? [She was more than willing to own up to what she did, but now that a lie has been used to cover it up...]

Not that I’m aware of.

[He hadn’t told a soul, not even Anakin, and he hadn’t heard anyone else mentioning Usagi in regards to it. Minnie was quite evasive and intent on keeping up the facade. Whether Usagi wanted to tell the truth or not was completely up to her.]

[The tension in her shoulders eases a bit and she takes a deep breath. Small favors.]

I don't... really know what to do. I know... I can't let something like that happen again, Obi-Wan.

[There was a small pause of silence from Obi-Wan as he listened and considered. Pulling back a bit, the Jedi then bent down in front of the young girl and took her hands in his. His blue eyes seeking hers.]

When one has great power, with it comes the responsibility of keeping it in control. The Jedi knew this, and I’m certain you do as well. You are at a point in your life where emotions run high, and are more difficult to keep in check.

[A wistful smile pulled at his lips. He remembered what it was like to be her age.]

It will get easier with time, I promise you. But you’re right in that this shouldn’t happen again.

If you are willing, I can teach you some of the disciplinary ways of my people. By learning to meditate and exercise calm properly, I believe you can find inner peace.

Edited 2018-04-14 11:47 (UTC)

[She pressed her lips together and wondered if she should actually try Obi-Wan's methods... Her fingers curled into the material of his robes and she closed her eyes in thought.]

It's not... that I'm not willing. [She breathed out, trying to find the right words to say, trying to figure out how best to explain.] I... just worry... I can't- mnn... I don't know if I can shut myself off the way... it sounds like Jedi are supposed to. [But then again, she has a very mixed view of how Jedi work from what she can gather from Anakin and Obi-Wan and everyone else.] I don't think I can ever be... I dunno as... [Not unattached, not dispassionate... she didn't know what word she wanted.] I dunno if I can achieve that same amount of calm.

[It was easy to see the doubt and uneasiness in Usagi at his suggestion. But instead of being disappointed or sad or frustrated, the man just smiled in understanding.]

There are many misconceptions about the Jedi my dear, and I certainly would never mean to turn you into one.

[The Jedi were a sacred order that one had to devote a lifetime of commitment to. Not something to be taken lightly, and not what he was offering her.]

I don’t know what Anakin has told you, but I can assure you that while he has certain opinions, he hasn’t completely abandoned our ways either. A Jedi doesn’t cut himself off from what makes us living and feeling beings. We merely learn to let go of that which is harmful to us and the world at large. I certainly could not have the relationship I do with him if I did. Which, I will admit is against our code, but in this world things are different.

What I’m getting at, is that I can teach you to learn to let go of your feelings when you need to. To gain a better control of yourself by understanding yourself. The only way to keep an outburst of that nature from happening again is by releasing it in a way that doesn’t result in destruction. Attachments or not aside, that is what the Jedi do.

[She let out the sigh of relief she didn't even know she was holding. She didn't think he was offering she become a Jedi (in fact, she's not even sure she could, weird worlds or not), but he wasn't asking her to try and take up their sense of ethics either. She gave a small nod. Maybe she could do this. She had to do this because she can't let something like that happen again. And wouldn't Rei be proud (if absolutely amazed) by her?

Being calm would be good, she could use being calmer in her life, or at least know how to achieve it better. She gave a small nod.
And wasn't Neo-Queen Serenity a calm and well... serene? Chibiusa always made her sound perfect and even Neo-King Endymion had regarded Serenity as this epitome of a ruler. She was turning 20, right? So obviously something somewhere in the middle had to change. Maybe this was it and she didn't know it.]

Alright... then... yes... I mean, it can't hurt to at least try.

[Jedi ethics were definitely a complicated matter that not even all Jedi agreed on. They had different schools of thought much like with anything else. But no, he wasn’t going to turn her into a monk. But there were things the Jedi taught that could be applied to life outside of the order. Besides, Obi-Wan has found that being a perfect Jedi in this world was practically impossible. Especially if one was to exercise the spirit of the Jedi ways in helping this ailing planet. He had to seek a new balance within himself in this place.

His smile then softened when she decided to give it a try, and he had to chuckle at that.]

One of my old masters used to say, do or do not, there is no try.

[While Obi-Wan said this in jest, the words of Yoda did hold a certain wisdom.]

We can start now if you like.

Um... [Did she really feel like starting? Well no, she didn't feel like doing much of anything, which tended to mean she should.]

Kay... uh, do I need to bring anything or do anything? I'm not going to have to stand naked under a waterfall to cleanse my body, am I? [Cause she knows Rei sometimes had to do that and she very much rather not.]

[Sensing her feelings, Obi-Wan also knew that sometimes one has to do what they don’t want in order to make progress. Though he laughed lightly at Usagi’s question.]

No, nothing of the sort. Most Jedi are very modest, myself included.

We only need a quiet place to sit. Preferably where you are most at ease.

[A place to sit where she felt at ease... she thought for a moment before guiding him through the house into the backyard where a very pretty, modest garden sits. In the corner of the garden is Rei's zen meditation garden, kept just as she left it in case she ever returns.]

Will this work?

[Following after Usagi patiently, Obi-Wan took a moment to look around when they came to the garden. He also was reaching out into the Force, feeling the atmosphere, and nodding his approval.]

Yes, I believe it will.

[He then motioned for Usagi to take a seat wherever she wanted.]

[She takes a seat, adjusting her hair so as not to sit on it and waits for... whatever it is she's supposed to do next.]

[Once she sits, Obi-Wan does the same. Sitting so that he's facing her. The man sitting in a meditative posture with his legs folded and his hands resting on his kness.]

The first thing is to close your eyes.

[As he said that, he did so himself.]

Now, breathe in. [He took a deep breath.] And breathe out. [And then he exhaled slowly as well.]

Focus on that. Just breathe, and empty your mind.

[She could do this, it was just breathing, right? Just... focus on the in and out, she tells herself, and for the most part (though some part of her suspected it helped that Obi-Wan who always made her feel calm was also there) she was able to do as he instructed and emptied her mind.

She fights the urge to ask "and now?" She wonders if he can hear her thoughts anyways? She really doesn't get how the Force works.]

[He can to some extent. Especially now as he too lapses into a light meditative state. Allowing him connect better with the Force and have greater clarity of everything around him.

He could feel the light buzz of impatience, but let them sit in silence for several moments before speaking again.]

Calm your mind, Usagi. Listen to the world around you. What do you hear?

[What did she hear? What did she hear, she wondered? She took a deep breath, what did she hear? She heaaaard her own breathing, she heard birds in the trees, she heard the soft rustling of the wind in the leaves.]

Nature, I guess? [Unless he wanted her to go into detail?]

[A little smile came back to Obi-Wan's face.]

That's right. There is life all around us. The birds, the trees, you, me, even the breeze. All of this is the Force, and the Force is in us. It is life.

By listening to the Force, listening to the life within you, you can find inner peace.

And... what is the Force supposed to tell me? [Can she even hear it, all things considered? She knew to Anakin and Obi-Wan she was rather... blinding in the Force, but that didn't mean she had access to it, did she? Just because she explained how a senshi was a senshi didn't suddenly mean someone could become one.]

That is something you must discover for yourself Usagi.

[Not helpful, he knows, but he goes on.]

The Force is connected to us all in varying degrees and speaks to us. Telling us it’s will for the good of all. You can hear it by listening to your feelings. And I don’t mean whatever emotions comes first to you. You must look deep within and search yourself. That is where meditation comes in.

[She presses her lips together to hold back the beleaguered sigh because you're right, Obi-Wan, that isn't helpful. Vague doesn't work for Usagi. She inhales.]

And what if the Force doesn't or can't talk to me. Just because it connects all of us doesn't mean I can understand it. I'm also from a different galaxy with... my own set of powers and abilities.

[She's very much able to already reach deep within herself, it's the meditation itself that she has no grasp of. How is this all supposed to help her calm down and not blow up like that again?]

Empatheias Inbox

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/2

2/2