We All Wear Masks

A place for stand-alone RP threads, or stories that may not fit into the main galaxy threads.
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Johnathon Lynd
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Joined: Tue Jan 14, 2020 6:41 pm

We All Wear Masks

Post by Johnathon Lynd »

His palms where interlocked around each other, the leather gloves not concealing anything as he passed carefully past each Jedi he passed in the halls, careful not to touch them in any way. He kept his head low looking at the ground in front of him. A passing Padawan came closer to him than others and his elbow brushed lightly against the teenage seer who immediately recoiled away from the young lady, who looked at him apologetically. He took a sharp breath in and continued on his way albeit at an increasingly swift pace. He passed several other Jedi in the grand halls of the temple, knights, padawans and even a master or two, all of them knew him as the shy and reclusive Junior Archivist who kept mostly to himself, all knew that he was a delicate soul who was just doing his best to replay the Jedi for allowing to live and work among them, despite the fact that he could never be trained to be one of them. It is true that there were several other force sensitives that were not suited for training. He however, differed from the majority them in one key way, his connection to the force was profoundly more significant but appeared to be uncontrollable, he had worked closely with more than one Master to temper the severity of his visions and to some extent, at least that is how it appeared.

Finally after an exhausting walk he found himself at the door to his quarters. He quickly pressed his keycard against the door and it slid open. He stepped in and raised his eyes to the fall. He did not bother to turn and lock his door, this was the Jedi temple after all and he was perfectly safe here. He dropped the physical outward façade that he had so carefully crafted to be amongst the rest of the Jedi, but he kept his aura the same. He moved to his bed and pulled out his luggage from the compartment under it. Swiftly he moved towards his closet and pulled out carefully selected and folded the meticulously before placing them carefully in his bag.


"Five."

With haste he zipped up the bag and left it carefully on the bed, he moved towards the mirror on the back wall facing the door.

"Four"

He tensed up his body, cracking his knuckles before he rested his hands with all of his weight against the wall and stared broodingly into the mirror.

"Three"

He let out a sigh and there his head back and shook it, he lower his head.

"Two"

He squinted and a tear rolled down his cheek and then....

"On.....The door slid open and the presence was immediately felt. He was early e"

The sixteen year old Seer raised his head, to peer at Krystopher standing in his doorway. Johnathon's face grew tense and nervous, carefully he had already made sure that the Jedi knight could see his face in the reflection of the mirror based on where both of them were standing.

He took both of his gloved hands and interlaced them in front of him gripping tightly, visible in his body language various muscles tensing.


"You...ummm...."

His voice cracked and he cleared his throat."

"Could have knocked. Either...either way I knew...I knew you were coming to see me...so come in....I guess."

He continued staring into the mirror watching without appearing to do anymore than stare directly at the glass in front of him.

"I am...sorry about the mess."

The room was meticlously kept in order, not a single book out of place on the shelf and no discernable dust visible, the only thing that looked out of place was the suitcase placed on the bed just to the right of wear both were standing. Finally he turned around, his hands still tensely interlocked. It was clear through the black t-shirt he was wearing that the young man had gained some muscle tone, in recent months, but other than that not much was different. He lowered his head to look at the floor in front of him, but did not bother to speak the words aloud. He knew Krystopher was clear on what he was likely about to ask anyway.

"Well?"
Last edited by Johnathon Lynd on Tue Jan 21, 2025 9:56 am, edited 1 time in total.
"Peace is a utopian idea perpetuated by those who believe they can change things for what they perceive to be the better. Peace is a lie.

I believe in spreading that lie."

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Rain
Posts: 8
Joined: Sat May 16, 2020 7:56 pm

Re: We All Wear Masks

Post by Rain »

[NOTE: I was lucky to write Rain with him way back when, but Krystopher's character does not belong to me. Johnathon's writer and I were struck by the concept of this particular meeting and how intricately it fits into the story arcs the 'Seer' characters were on at this point in the timeline. All rights and credit to Krystopher stay with his original author. Thank you for letting me borrow Krys! I hope it manages to do his story a bit of justice.]

* * *

’…You could have knocked.’

Krystopher considered the doorframe with a rueful smile. The young archivist hadn’t been wrong, but even so, the knight kept himself respectfully at the center of the doorway with his hands to his sides. There wasn’t much noteworthy about his appearance; Krystopher wore plain Jedi traveling clothes and his own thin gloves, a simple hilt on his belt and a plain blaster. He was average in height and fitness for a Jedi in his late twenties; relatively pale, with dark brown hair and matching eyes; a quiet-calm expression.

When his brown eyes settled on Jonathon’s back in a mild fashion, Krystopher nodded in small gesture of acceptance or apology.

“The invitation had felt clear, but I’m sorry Johnathon. I hoped you would be willing to take a walk with me. It’s your choice though.”
Sometimes 10,000 sleepless nights are what it takes.

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Johnathon Lynd
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Re: We All Wear Masks

Post by Johnathon Lynd »

The invitation had been clear and he knew that, they both did. Johnathon tensed slightly, as he stood there he rubbed his gloved hands together and once more his knuckles audibly cracked. His once long and messy hair had been trimmed and was tighter and more put together than it previously had been, by outward appearance he was in fact quite different.

"I hoped you would be willing to take a walk with me."

To where? His breathing sharpened slightly and he glanced over to his kitchenet to a kettle sitting on the stove. His lower jaw moved and he curled his upper lip to meet his teeth and a small trickle of blood rand down his pearly white teeth. He pulled his lips in and licked the small amount of blood away, it would stop soon enough.


"With...all those...people??"

The young man's mind had already considered this moment and while he did not hide his fear, he had redirected it from it's original origin. He blinked rapidly staring at the torso of Krystopher blocking his door, his only exit. He could not go through him, there was no way that was possible. He had not studied Krystopher's face so he could not get a good sense of what his body language was telling him, but he knew he DID NOT like feeling trapped. He shoved his left hand in his pocket swiftly and pulled out a small metal cube with a few different tactile features on it and he began twirling it around in his hand rapidly.

What could Krystopher see?

Johnathon shoved his hand back in his pocket and turned to move swiftly towards the kettle. He retrieved two mugs methodically and placed them precisely on the counter in front of him. He filled both mugs equally with practiced precision, the robust green mint tea was perfectly brewed. He retrieved one mug, turned swiftly and lowered his eyes once more as he moved towards Krystopher. He reached out, curling his finger tips back so that only the minimum friction required to keep the mug from falling was present and there was no chance of their fingers accidentally touching.


"I do not think I will. Thank you. Tea...instead."
"Peace is a utopian idea perpetuated by those who believe they can change things for what they perceive to be the better. Peace is a lie.

I believe in spreading that lie."

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Rain
Posts: 8
Joined: Sat May 16, 2020 7:56 pm

Re: We All Wear Masks

Post by Rain »

Sharp breaths. Heart rate causing sensation of sound and equilibrium to intensify. Glossy bead of red like a violent representation of a dewdrop. There would be no walk; not today. Understanding of that much dropped unpleasantly into the pit of Krystopher’s stomach before he finished offering the suggestion.

Even then, the tension from the youth was forceful enough that the sincerely observant Padawan in Krystopher would have liked to show sympathy and drop the topic before Johnathon tensed into reminding him being even more of threatened cornered animal. The calmly sincere man who’d gown into Knighthood several years ago pressed himself through the twinge of unpleasant shatterpoints and suggested they take a walk anyway. Avoiding discomfort wasn’t the same as compassion. An unpleasantly negative reaction didn’t mean the conversation was wasted; even with the scrape of a cube on his nerves.

Krystopher watched the textbook pacing and fidgeting until Johnathon's motion with the kettle and scent of tea gave some flicker of relief to the situation. Without actually sighing, the knight stepped from the open door into the living room and settled to stand a few feet away from the door, where he received the meticulously offered mug.

Atomic vibration transferred immediately from the tea mug into the familiar thin shield of his own gloves, molecules slamming into molecules until the energy cascaded deep into his fingers and palms. Psychometry snuck in with the heat or cold sometimes, but it was only temperature now.

Krystopher regarded the youth’s back when Johnathon turned away; then just watched him from the edge of his vision and let the heat soak into his hands for a while. Eventually the Jedi lowered his eyes to the tea and took a quiet sip from the cup the younger man had prepared for him. He didn't say much for a moment, but eventually he looked back toward the teen.

“What do you think of your father?"
Sometimes 10,000 sleepless nights are what it takes.

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Johnathon Lynd
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Re: We All Wear Masks

Post by Johnathon Lynd »

And there it was. The providential question finally asked. A cold sharp shiver shot down his spine. He took his mug in one hand and took one of his gloves off with his teeth, let it drop on the floor and did the same thing once more. It wasn’t clear to Johnathon what Kristopher knew, but what was clear however a that he came here to spark a reaction out of the young seer. He had maintained his facade up until this point but he wondered how much of that was worth the effort anymore. Shit. A silent mental swear to himself at the situation unfolding.

He took a long sip of his tea and turned his back to Krystopher before setting the mug on the counter. Once he had done so he straightened his back, his black shirt betrayed his physical strength, the muscles in his upper back were clearly visible, as were the veins in his arms and hands. He was athletic, not the skinny scared child of a few years ago. He let his arms fall by his side and spun around swiftly, his hazel eyes seeking out Krystopher’s own eyes like a missile.


“So you came here to fuck with me…?”

A quiet confidence bordering on arrogance settled into the teen as he stood there coldly. quiet confidence, bordering on arrogance settled into the teen as he stood there coldly. Fear was gone from his face, all that remained was this perplexing young man who seemed to defy all that was known about him.
"Peace is a utopian idea perpetuated by those who believe they can change things for what they perceive to be the better. Peace is a lie.

I believe in spreading that lie."

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Rain
Posts: 8
Joined: Sat May 16, 2020 7:56 pm

Re: We All Wear Masks

Post by Rain »

Battle Precognition, Danger Sense, Jedi reflexes. Anyone could call it what they wanted; the Force had seen fit to concentrate a disproportionate natural gift into both souls in the room.

Childhood was rarely gentle to any of them, but the quiet brown-haired man across from the youth had been raised through twenty years of training and testing; then five with the trust and burdens of an adult in the Order.

It wasn’t some combat trick to develop skill at, but he’d been trained to spar precognitives about as much as any living Force-User with less than a century of experience. He’d even become as decent a teacher as anyone could that he knew of. Krystopher was Jedi, and he had no intention of meeting Johnathon’s eyes at present.

“I came to ask if you’d take a walk,” he replied, watching the tension in the other’s bared hands. “It seems that you won’t at this time, so instead listen. And do not try to touch me.”

“The walk might have made this less charged, but it doesn't really matter. I asked what you feel about the imperfect man who sired you and then tried in some fractured way to protect you from yourself and everyone with any power to help or abuse you.. then eventually brought you to live with the people he’d trusted enough to raise two other sons of his, and put a plasma beam through the heart of the third.

Now we host you, but though we made efforts to teach you at times, no one risked failure or bruising their consciences enough to train you. We can play the high cards and say that you were too old to force, and in too much agony to crack you open even further. Both true But I’m keenly aware of what we might have done. What I’m not aware of is what you feel. So what is it?”
Last edited by Rain on Wed Jan 29, 2025 9:04 am, edited 1 time in total.
Sometimes 10,000 sleepless nights are what it takes.

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Johnathon Lynd
Posts: 30
Joined: Tue Jan 14, 2020 6:41 pm

Re: We All Wear Masks

Post by Johnathon Lynd »

A sinking feeling. A miscalculation, he saw it before it happened but he couldn't stop it from happening as it already had by the time he realized what Krystopher's reaction would likely be. He averted his eyes from Krystopher and picked a spot over the Jedi Knight's shoulder versus direct eye contact. He was certain he had not betrayed his secret, but he had raised more than one or two question marks. There was nothing worth restoring his facade it was clear that it was not the real him anymore, and doing so risked exposing a bigger secret....He opened his mouth to speak

"Master Krystopher, I am...sorry. I...you asking about my father is...odd and so is showing up here. It felt like an attack...."

Then the gravity of something Krystopher had send landed before he could finish voicing his thought. His eyes narrowed a bit and a tinge of frustration and maybe a touch of anger filled his aura.

"You host me?! You act like you have any other choice but to host me. My father brought me here for my protection or whatever reason he had during a time when he was far more pathetic than he is now. You know I see him right? I see every little thing he has done. What do you think that was like for a child?! Host me?! You speak as if it is a bloody courtesy Krystopher! We both know that if I fell into the wrong hands I would be extremely dangerous. They'd exploit me against you and thus logicially this is the only place for me, unless you just WANT me to leave."

Fuck. Another silent curse to himself, filled to the brim with frustration. Once again he had let himself be impulsive and he wasn't sure what Krystopher's reaction to it would be. He took a breath in and cracked his knuckles.

"...And I'd NEVER try and touch you. I just did to you what I felt you were doing to me."

Did he save it? He wasn't sure, but it couldn't have hurt. If anything maybe it made him seem just as erratic as he had two years ago which played into this being little more than an agitated young seer. He could only hope, because much to his frustration and likely the reason he had avoided him, he could not fully See Krystopher and he was NOT comfortable with that.
"Peace is a utopian idea perpetuated by those who believe they can change things for what they perceive to be the better. Peace is a lie.

I believe in spreading that lie."

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