Of Love and War Book 4: When Darkness Falls

Chapter 5: Deafening Whispers

Once she was no longer being called on by others, and she felt she'd made—almost—all the rounds to everyone she needed to see now that she was back, Zelina took a small moment to breathe. Even then, she wasn't really pausing in her duties, because she was still aiming to get something done in this small space of time she had to herself. After parting ways with Anakin, Zelina went into Coruscant's market district, managing to blend in so she could avoid any unwanted attention from citizens blaming the Jedi for the war. It was a quick trip, as she only left to get a plain Republic Soldier action figure and some purple paint before making her way back to the Jedi Temple. Once she was back among the safety of the Temple's walls, Zelina relaxed, heading straight for the Jedi Archives. She quietly asked Jocasta Nu for information on healing abilities with the Force, keeping her supplies hidden while she waited patiently for the woman to return with the basics.

Zelina didn't have much time to practice with Padme already in her second trimester, but she could at least gain the knowledge and practice while she could. She'd rather prepare herself as much as she could and fall short than come to Anakin empty handed.

When Jocasta returned with some material for Zelina to begin with, Zelina thanked her and retreated to a quiet, secluded part of the archives. There she settled down, reclining in her seat and starting the recording so she could listen while she worked. A Jedi Master long dead began to speak, going over the fundamental basics of healing with the Force while Zelina pulled out the soldier toy she'd gotten in the market and began to paint, taking great care to keep her lines steady and imitate the markings on her Commander's armor.

She'd do some research on pregnancies to help with this specific situation outside of the Temple—she didn't exactly want anyone to catch her researching that, especially if they jumped to the wrong conclusion and thought perhaps she was the one who was pregnant.

That would be quite the conundrum for her to talk herself out of without exposing Padme.

Not caring to even try to keep track of time, Zelina simply reclined in her seat, continuing with her careful paint job and listening to the holo, losing herself in her tasks and absorbing every word that came from the small recording. Eventually she finished her toy project, setting the small purple and white soldier that looked a lot like Cruiser on the table. She'd even taken the time to work on making the paint look scratched and weathered, like Cruiser's actual armor was, as she had plenty of time to pay attention to that kind of detail. After he was finished, she turned her attention to the holo, settling down in her chair and closing her eyes as she started to meditate, allowing her to focus more closely on the instructions she was hearing.

She'd have to see if she could work in some time in a medbay somewhere to help develop her abilities. For now, the lessons were basic enough she could probably just practice on herself.

After listening to several recordings that Jocasta had given her, Zelina started to feel a familiar presence headed in her direction, one she got the sense was probably looking for her. Pulling herself out of her meditative state, Zelina sat up so she could wait for their impending arrival.

Sure enough, a few minutes later Anakin appeared from one of the aisles, taking in Zelina sitting comfortably in her chair with a small holo of some past Jedi Master lecturing on healing techniques. Once she saw him she sat up, pausing the holo so that she wouldn't miss anything.

Anakin glanced at the holo in what seemed like surprise, gaze settling back on Zelina. "I wasn't expecting you to already be...thank you. You're one of the few people being honest with me right now, it would seem," Anakin said awkwardly, coming to a stop a few steps away.

"Of course, Ani—I said I'd do everything I could to help. But I doubt that's why you hunted me down to my quiet little corner," Zelina said with a slight smile.