Hypatia

Winds of Fate III: Blasphemous Rumors.

Author: Hypatia

Rating: Hard PG-13 or Soft R. (Violence, Foul Language, Sexual Innuendo… all the things that make life interesting)

Warning: Taking a liberty with a Men in Black Quote…. “Unlimited potential of the human imagination and she comes up with this POS.”

Archive: No. 

Note: I THINK I put enough in so someone who hasn’t read my Winds series can understand it.  However, it has more meaning and fruity import if you have.

DISCLAIMER: *Le Sigh* Mommy do I HAVE to?  Damn it.  Star Wars is the intellectual property of George Lucas and his subsidiary companies.  I hold no claim to them, nor am I receiving any form of compensation. Any other resemblance this story may bear to other works, fictional or factual, is either purely co-incidental, or so obviously intentional I added it just to see if anyone recognizes it.  Again, I make no money, I’m just having fun.

 

            You keep running.  Your task is narrowed to putting one foot in front of the other and managing to remain standing upright.  Sweat pours down your body.  You are burning inside but your skin feels so incredibly cold.  Your legs and lungs are in agonizing pain and you feel as if you could fall asleep on your feet.

            “Come on!” called a healer from the back. “It’s our turn to observe.  Test strength.”

            The Jedi council is standing in a circle around a treadmill watching you sweat.  How long you have been running you have no idea, but in a way you greatly appreciate it.  Running allows your mind to be freed of the daily troubles.  You are grateful that the past few days you were worked to utter exhaustion and are asleep before your head hits the pillow. It keeps you from thinking about how Obi-wan Kee-fucking-obi is making tears appear in your eyes.

            You woke up in the hospital alone.  The hospital bit didn’t surprise you.  That was the location you fell asleep after mysteriously returning from Tatooine and the Death star.  The alone status is what bothered you.  You fell asleep warm and cozy in Obi-wan’s arms and wound in blankets.   He was gone when you woke up and left you nothing, no note, not a word.  Just gone.

            And DAMN did it sting.

            That is why you barely shrugged when the Council, healers and other trainers wanted to work you into exhaustion with demonstrations of how you function.  They wanted to see how connected you are to your “inner energy” now.  What kind of training you might need…ect.  It made sense.  You are the first mage since the sith wars ended.  They want to know what you can do.

  You’ve been too depressed and tired to eat much this past month.  With a sigh you redouble your efforts and hope for your fifth (or was it sixth?) wind to hit you. After a while, it becomes abundantly clear the only wind you have left is the fan blowing behind you. You are even too tired to fart and create that kind of wind.  The healers stand inside the circle of Council members and watch you with even more intensity.

Your vision swims a bit but you wipe your eyes with your forearm, figuring it’s only sweat.  When it doesn’t go away you immediately slap the emergency stop button on the treadmill and stagger off it.  There is a murmur of disapproval as you walk on legs made of jelly and cartilage to Mace Windu.  He stares down at you with an arched eyebrow.  You swear to god there is something inside you that is still running on that gerbil machine.

You are about to give him a piece of your mind when your body decides that the cold marble floor is looking mighty comfortable.  Your knees give out and you feel your body go limp for impact with the stone.  Your eyes close and you hope that the Healers will be able to handle the concussion you are going to get from the collision of the floor with your head.

************8

“I don’t care what you and the rest of the world wants with her.  Can’t you see she has been through enough?” came a familiar voice that was a velvety male but held steel beneath it.

“But we need to know what her limits are for training.” A whine you have come to identify with a particularly snot nosed healer.

“Literally running her into the ground is a good indication of her current limits wouldn’t you say?” you can almost hear the clash of battle steel in the voice.  Qui-gon, it was Qui-gon!  He’s come to rescue you.  You moan and try to sit up, but find your body protesting, so you attempt to roll.  There is the sound of boots clicking along the floor then strong arms pull you into a gentle embrace. “Hush, you are going to be safe.”

You murmur happily and simply force your tired limbs to climb into the welcoming warmth.  You feel a warm cloak wrap around you and you settle further into the lap.  From what you can gather through your sense of touch, you are curled into a fetal position, your head resting on his shoulder, his cloak wrapped around both of you. 

“Qui-gon” rumbles Mace Windu, “What do you think you are doing?”

“Helping a very tired young lady get the rest she needs.” He replies evenly.

“So you run in, catch her before she hits the ground and keep running?  After a search we find her on your bed in your quarters?”

“Yes.  She was tired and I could think of no better place to hide her and let her get some much needed rest” He defends himself. “I think you and the Healers have all the information you need to select an appropriate trainer.  Since the healers have seen fit to not give me an assignment, I will assign myself to look after her and prevent this from happening again.”

“Defying the council yet again Qui-gon?” Mace Windu says, with a great deal of affection in his voice.

Qui-gon’s chuckle vibrates his chest and feels warm and relaxing against your body.  As welcoming as home baked bread. “To the very last breath Councilor Mace Windu.”

“We will miss you, old friend.” Mace Windu chuckled, “Without you, who will scandalize us?”

He laughs, “I think this little one here will do a better job then I ever did.  I have a feeling with this one, the Jedi are going to become flexible like we’ve never seen.”  You feel a large hand stroke your hair and cradle your head.

You sense Mace Windu come to kneel by you and trace your chin with his finger.  “We were all afraid you were going to turn into a ghost once Obi-wan was knighted.  That nothing more would keep your attention you would simply wait to die from your illness.”

Illness?  Qui-gon was dying?  The way they were talking about it, it seemed as if everyone knew.

It suddenly struck you like a bolt of lightning.  He had been dying long before he stepped foot on Naboo.  You shiver and snuggle closer trying to deny what you have heard.  But the truth remains, your vague control can sense his life force slipping away… ever so slowly.  It was like watching air slip out of a tiny hole in a balloon.  At first the balloon shrinks slowly, then increases in speed.

Because of your gift, you can only see it, you can’t save him.

Other things begin to make sense.  Why Qui-gon was sent on a mission that seemed almost too easy for a jedi master of his stature.

Why Qui-gon failed in the battle with the sith.  He wasn’t in his youth but he certainly was skilled enough to take on anyone on two legs with a saber, darkside aiding the opposing party or not.  Hell, age had nothing to do with it. Yoda probably could defeat Maul and he was an arthritic three foot high garden gnome. Qui-gon was sick, that is why he tired out.

Obi-wan was well beyond knighthood to have defeated the Sith.  Maybe, just maybe, everyone held Obi-wan back for fear Qui-gon might waste away after Obi-wan’s trials.  No one wanted to see a Jedi warrior broken by a disease and waiting to die. 

Yes sir-ee, this all sure explained one HELL of a lot.

“The force had other things in mind then me wasting away.” He laughs

“You take it upon yourself to care for her?”

“yes.  Whoever trains her will have me on their heels to make sure they treat her properly.”

“Excellent.  It’s hard to escape yourself.”

There was a pause.  Then Qui-gon’s hair tickles your cheek as you feel him incline his head. “I am honored and accept.  I will train her to the best of my ability.”

“Good.” You hear the rustle of Mace Windu standing up and leaving.   You hear the soft footsteps stop. “By the way, if I had said no, what would you have said.”

It was then you get really annoyed and decide to answer for him. “Fuck off Mace, I am trying to sleep.” You slip off to dreamland, Jedi laughter following you down.

*******************8

“Nothing.” The Healer tosses his hands in the air.  “There is nothing strange about this girl at all.”

You snicker a bit at the comment.  That has to be a first for you.  Most people say there is something a bit off about you.  Qui-gon winks at you from his corner where he is observing the proceedings.

Apparently Obi-wan had been very loose about his term of Mage.  Mage was simply a title bestowed upon anyone who had a unique force power that couldn’t be taught to anyone else.  Unique in the sense that either the Jedi didn’t have it, or didn’t have it to near the degree as the mage. 

A couple mages of the past were pyro-kenetic, a power Jedi don’t have.  A few of them were able to see things happening far away.  This is a power most jedi possess to some degree.  While all Jedi can say that a disaster has occurred somewhere, a mage was able give map coordinates and tell colors of shirts the people there were wearing.

The room looked like one of those new age psychic test facilities.  Cards with symbols on them lay scattered, objects of various weights were laying around.  Boxes with mysterious contents were stacked in one corner, and combustibles are on the table.

“Yeah, nothing odd, other then the fact I seem to be as bright as magnesium flare at midnight with force.” You smirk 

Qui-gon clears his throat, “Perhaps it’s time for a break.  We don’t want to overtire her, would we?”

The healers look at him like a spoiled child would look at a parent who had told them it was time to go to bed.

“Do you have any idea what she could be?” the soft spoken assistant healer whispers.  She has a shy demeanor and soft brown eyes.

Qui-gon looks at you for a while before saying, “How did you know to tell Obi-wan to bring the healing droids with us in battle?”

Your jaw drops and you feel your heart hammer in your chest.  That was the opening for him asking all sorts of uncomfortable questions.  Ones you aren’t sure you should answer about their future.  Qui-gon nods to the male healer to leave the room.

Qui-gon picks up a stylus and data pad and hands it to you, “Draw what you think one of the healers will draw.”

You frown as you stare at the blank pad.  Draw what you thought a healer would draw?  Much to your surprise, while your mind is paralyzed, your hand is not.  Soon a sketch of a mountain is completed with far more skill then you are usually capable of.

You hand the pad over to Qui-gon.  He calls over to the male healer asking him to begin drawing.  A few minutes later, the male healer hands his over.  Suddenly Qui-gon smiled, “I think we found her talent.”

With that Qui-gon turned the pads to face you and your jaw drops.  On the healers pad was a picture of a mountain, exactly like the one you drew, right down pen stroke.  It looked like a perfect photo copy.

“A prophet,” The female Healer gasps! “How wonderful! We haven’t had one in ages.”

“Last prophet was the one who made the prediction about the chosen one.  Why didn’t I see it before?  It would make sense a prophet would show up now when the prophecy was coming to life.” The male said.

“What do we know about the gift of prophecy?” The female asks

“Well we know that it can be trained to some extent, but can be highly unpredictable.  The force chooses whether or not to bless her with insight.” The male says

You sigh as you lay your head on the table, knowing a long technical force discussion that didn’t involve you is about to take place between the Jedi.  Before you can even voice your opinion that you should be allowed to leave the room a vision appears in your head.

It’s hard to describe.  The world suddenly drops out from under you and it is as if you are standing in the room by the door, looking at the table.  You see the male and female healer lying on the table in an extremely compromising position.  Both of them looking rather pleased with the situation.

As you come back to yourself your head pops up in shock and stare at the two healers. Before you can stop yourself you hear your voice say, “The two of you are going to have sex on this table.”

Qui-gon, who is in the middle of a drink of water, spews out what was in he mouth across the room.  The two healers turn dead pale.

“Yes.  Highly unpredictable.” Qui-gon smirks.

~*~*~*~

“And I must say it is astonishing at how well you are coming along.  I mean, it’s amazing how you can foresee the future on command.  Your talent is a lot more reliable then other prophets of the past,” Yammered on some fairly young Jedi knight who has just gotten a new padawan.

You sigh as you pick at your food, trying to give off the impression you are disinterested and trying to read your book on Republic procedures.  It was hard to understand in the ‘wherefores’ and ‘whose so shalts’ to know what the damn thing was saying.  All you can guess is that republic law was put into place specifically so Lawyers would be employed and no one could get anything done.

You look at Qui-gon as he passes you the bread basket.  He has taken to sitting next to you when you eat in the café. This was done to discourage people like this current knight from taking that position.  This one was either braver or denser then most.

You open your mouth and try to interject one word, “I…”

“But I have to say, soon you shall be choosing a knight protector.”

“Knight Protector?” you ask looking up from your food and your papers, “What’s this?” looking straight at Qui-gon.  But Mr Yammerer answered.

“Oh, no one has told you yet?”   He seems to positively beam.  You get the distinct feeling that you have just erected a sign that said ‘stalk me’.

The knight’s bright brown eyes twinkle as he brushes some of his curly brown hair out of his eyes.  “Well, a mage is indeed a rare and wonderful thing we have with us.  Surely you have read how a Mage has a knight always to guard them on missions?”

You nod cautiously. “Yes.  A knight is to essentially play bodyguard.  I thought it was a temporary thing, depending on the assignment.”

His eyes go wide and he laughs, “Oh we wish.  Then all of us could have the honor of serving you.  No, it’s a permanent position.  The Mage can choose who they wish to serve them.”

“What happens if the person dies?” you ask

He shrugs, “You chose another one.”

“Listen, I appreciate your company.  But I am finding it rather difficult to concentrate on my reading with your lips attached to my ass.” You snap and promptly stand up and walk out of the room.

When you reach the gardens you turn around to see Qui-gon standing behind you.  You frown, “Is it true? “

“Yes.” He nods. “Now that you know, every night I am duty bound to ask you if you have chosen yet.”

You frown at him. “I won’t choose.  It’s disgusting the way he was flinging himself at me.”

“Why?” he asks

“He’s begging for a suicide mission!  He is a glory hound!  I don’t want someone at my side because they want honor!  Honor is no reason to do anything!  You should do something because it’s right.” You decide to release your anger to the force by kicking a rock as far down the trail as you can.

Qui-gon sits down on a log, “Is that why you are really upset.  Or is it the fact that he just made you realize everything that is happening to you is real?”

You stare at him in shock, completely and utterly mute.  The only thing you could do was wonder how it was that he knew precisely what you meant even when you didn’t.

He smiles gently, “My dear, I may be old, but I am not that old.  I know up until just recently you didn’t realize this was really happening.  We Jedi have been trained since we were infants to be among the galaxy’s elite.  Now, you, an ordinary girl, is now thrust into this hall of greatness and everyone expects you to be something greater then we.  Something you hold in common with Anakin.”

You stare at him for a long while before flopping down on the ground at his feet, “You’re right.”

He sits forward and massages your shoulders. “My dear girl, you don’t have to worry about all this for a while.  Just get some control over your abilities.  The rest shall take care of it’s self.”

“I wish I had as much confidence in me as you seem to.” you hug him.

“One of us should.” He grinned, “Meanwhile, I shall fend off the glory hounds.  I have something of a flair for acting.  I shall enjoy playing glowering Jedi master, or weak sickly man.”

**********************************8

 

            It’s been several months and Qui-gon has kept you mostly to himself during training.  You know now why everyone called him the master.  He is one of those rare people who is just an inspirational teacher.  He makes his students work hard but makes every lesson he gives seem like a pleasure and privledge.  He praises what you do right, and points out what you need improvement upon.

            However, as wonderful as this time is, you can see him growing steadily weaker.  Each day the amount of time it takes for him to stand up increases.  His pace is slower each week.  You know he is dying, but you haven’t been able to believe it, just yet.

“You are coming along very well.” Qui-gon says “You are managing your visions and are able to somewhat control it.  You can get a vision most times you ask for it, but are still knocked off kilter by unexpected ones.  That is to be expected given your gift.”

            “Thanks” You blush “How are you feeling?”

            “I have been worse.” He said with a smile. “You could be seeing right through me.”

            You roll your eyes. “Master Qui-gon, you are the only person I know that can laugh at something like nearly dying.”

            He chuckles, the warm baritone embracing all those in ear shot with its golden warmth. “Laughter heals the soul and the heart.  Any of the healers will tell you that once you heal those two, you can heal the body.”

You laugh with him and towel the sweat on your neck and face off while Qui-gon closes his eyes and checks you on the force, making sure that you haven’t drained yourself.

            “Well, I am grateful that you aren’t dead.  It’s hard to learn how to control the force from a blue ghost.  Then again, Luke did it.” You say almost to yourself in thought

            “Pardon?” he asks curiously. “Is this another vision?”

            “Never mind,” You say as the two of you walk down the hall.  It was getting to be rather late. It was time for dinner and then bed.

            You make a dish that took you all this time to perfect.  You had no idea how hard it would be to find the Star Wars version of Oregano.  But you managed it be some miracle and had introduced Qui-gon to the wonders of Pizza.  The first time he tasted it he looked as if he was going to join the force early, he was so happy.   

Ordering Qui-gon to remain sitting while you finish cooking.  As a woman who has lived alone for a long time, you found a rather strong domestic pleasure in making a meal for two.  Qui-gon simply starts to chuckle as you bring the savory dish to the table and serve him the first slice.

            “What?” you ask

            He smiles as he pours the drinks, “If any of the council saw this now, they would string me up by my hide.”

            “Huh?”

            He grinned as he nodded his thanks, “You my dear, are the first mage in an age, and stronger then any we have ever seen in recorded history. A mage is held in the absolute highest regard. I should be serving you.”

            You mumble around your mouthful, “I can’t have a master Jedi serving me!  It’s undignified.  You know a hell of a lot more then I do.  I know damn well who my betters are.  Talent is nice, but it’s training that makes it a skill.”

            You both eat in silence enjoying each other’s quiet company.  After a while he simply shakes his head, “You shouldn’t judge him harshly.”

            “Don’t start this again, Qui-gon.” You warn

            “He’s not as bad as you think.” He says as if you were silent

            “You are starting.” You sigh and place your chin in your hand

            “I am sure he had his reasons.” He cajoles

            You flinch. You and qui-gon have this argument at least once a day.

            “He never said good bye.” You say softly, tears starting to trickle.  “I wouldn’t be so mad if he had said good bye.”

            Qui-gon pushes back from the table and holds his arms open.  You gladly kneel on the floor and let his arms and robe envelope you as he has comforted you several times before.

            He whispers softly, “He is one of the kindest men I have ever had the fortune to know.  He wouldn’t do anything to hurt you or commit such breach of protocol as to not even say good bye after spending the night with a lady without a damn good reason.”

            You let the tears of a broken heart that wouldn’t seem to heal.  Half formed dreams, born from the time you spent with old Ben on Tatooine, were crushed by the callus rejection.  When you pull back he dries your eyes with the sleeve of his cloak.

            “I’m sorry,” you say wiping your eyes dry and trying to regain some dignity.

            “As I told Obi-wan when he was a child, it can’t all go to the force,” he smiles and continues to dry your eyes. “I must ask you.  Have you chosen?”

            You sigh, “I don’t KNOW anyone.  How can I pick a Knight to protect me?  Besides, I don’t want to put that burden on anyone.  This whole tradition of a mage having a knight protector is completely ridiculous.  How can I possibly ask someone?”

You could tell he keeps hoping you will choose Obi-wan.  You don’t mind Qui-gon’s efforts.  Most of the Masters want you to choose their padawans because they want the honor of having the Mage’s Choice fall upon their padawan.  Those masters praised their own apprentices like they were very bad used car salesmen.

Qui-gon wants you and his padawan to get together because he thinks you will keep each other company and get along well.  He makes his cases for his padawan for all the right reasons.  Besides, the man, like Yoda, is an incorrigible matchmaker in his old age.

            Qui-gon sighs, “Then I guess I will have to tell Yoda the contest shall go on.” 

            Your mind, not quick on the uptake realizes his last statement. There is a long pause as your brain processes it. “Excuse me?”

            Qui-gon traces your face as he speaks, “If the mage doesn’t chose a knight by the time he or she finishes the training, then the eligible Jedi may compete in a contest for the honor of going on a mission.  Upon success of the mission the mage can choose again, if the mage still refuses, then another contest happens.”

            “Are you saying that people are going to inflict pain on each other for the honor of killing themselves for me?” you ask with eyebrows in your hairline.

            “Yes.” He smiles

            “Don’t tell me YOU support this!”

            He grinned, “My dear girl, if I were ten years younger, I would be giving these snot nosed kids a run for their money.  Mace Windu is cursing the terms of the council saying he can’t resign as head of council to compete.  Any Jedi who can make it back is coming.”

            You sit there stunned, “I don’t believe it.”

            “Believe it.  Obi-wan arrived today.”

            Your shocked commentary starts with his parentage and ends with his sexual prowess.  Qui-gon simply sits there with a small smile on his face.

            He pats your cheek and kisses it, “I am very proud of both you and Obi-wan.”

            He gets up and walks out the door, something a little off about his walk.  “Hey, Qui-gon.”

            He stops in the hall and turns to you, “Yes?”

            “If you were ten years younger, I’d pick you.”

            He gives a full out grin before turning back to disappear down the hall.

~*~*~*~*~*~

You wake up to a pounding.  Realizing that it isn’t your head, you sit up and pull on some slippers.  You hear your name being called by Anakin in his child’s soprano.  Opening it you take one look at his face and grab your cloak and start running with him.

            You arrive at Qui-gon’s door and don’t even bother knocking.  The healers let you pass through,  the knights crowded in his rooms blocked your path.

“Excuse me” Anakin starts to say, trying to get through. “Pardon me… Mage… Please?”

You shout, ‘EVERYBODY….MOVE”

The knights create a path straight to Qui-gon’s door.

“Thanks” Anakin says up at you and both of you jog down the path of knights.  You don’t notice how the group bows as you pass them.  Finally you walk into the bed room and see Obi-wan kneeling by his former master. Over the past few months his hair had grown out of the padawan cut and was falling slightly over his eyes in honey gold.  His changeable eyes are ocean blue as they glance up from his former master.  They are bright with unshed tears.    You immediately kneel on the other side of the bed, tears starting to fall from your own eyes. 

Anakin is intercepted by a healer before he could enter the room.  You give a silent thanks to who ever did that.  Watching someone die was not the place for a nine year old child.  The door behind you clicks closed.

            “Master Qui-gon.” You whisper softly.  His eyes flicker open and focus on you.

            “Figures master,” Obi-wan mutters, “That if anything could wake you it would be a woman.”

            “Insulting your master to that last?” Qui-gon smiles affectionately

            “Someone has to keep you humble master, when someone makes your head swell.” Obi-wan says, trying to smile cheekily, but the tear tracks belie his impudent attitude.

            Qui-gon reaches out and wiped away his former apprentice’s tears.  “I am so proud of you.  You will make sure Anakin gets trained won’t you?”

            “I will.” He smiles back, “After the battle on Naboo, I don’t think there is a doubt in anyone’s mind that he should be trained.”

            Qui-gon closes his eyes, “My thanks Obi-wan, you have surpassed my greatest hopes.  Take care of Ani and take care of her.”

“I will master,” Obi-wan promises.  Qui-gon reaches out his hand and Obi-wan takes it in one of his hands and strokes Qui-gon’s cheek with the other. 

Qui-gon then looks at you. “I have only known you for a few months, but it was a privilege to meet you.  You too, will far exceed my hopes.”  He holds a hand out to you and you gladly take it with a smile and hold the back of it to your face.  Qui-gon smiles at you with a happy look in his eyes.

Qui-gon’s body shudders and his eyes close once again.  You and Obi-wan both call for him and try to wake him again.  He does not wake.  His face simply relaxes into a soft smile as his body gives up its ghost.

The greatest living Jedi warrior, who spent his lifetime bringing peace and justice to the galaxy he loved so well, died a peaceful death surrounded by loving friends.  In your mind this is a far more fitting ending for this man then dying on Naboo in a cold generator room.

            You and Obi-wan sit back on your heels, tears streaming down your faces.  You look down and see that Qui-gon had replaced his hand with Obi-wan’s hand while he died.

            You stare at the hand holding yours.  You look up to see Obi-wan staring at you.  You blink at Obi-wan.  He simply starts to stroke your hand with his thumb, his eyes clearly saying that you were his. 

            Your eyes well up with tears at the loss of a dear friend and mentor, no matter how brief a time you knew him.  You stand up and rush out of the room.  Grief overwhelming you.

*****************8

You arrive back in your rooms and sink to your knees just as the doors shut behind you.  Before you can let a single tear fall you hear in impossibly familiar tones.

 

“Now that was a bit over dramatic, wasn’t it?”

 

You look up and feel your jaw drop.  Sitting at your table in the very chair he occupied just a few hours ago, was Qui-gon Jinn.  He looks as hale and healthy as he always has. 

 

Well, if you can ignore the fact he’s translucent and glowing blue.  His lips turn up into a smirk.

 

“Now what was it you were saying about being trained by a blue ghost?” He arcs an eyebrow, his blue eyes just twinkling with merriment.

 

“You… you’re dead,” You say as you point at him.

 

“Yes.  I died just a short while ago, as you know,” He continues.

 

“Why are you here?” You ask as you take a seat in a chair across from him

 

Qui-gon smiles, “Apparently the force feels you will need a bit more help and protection then most.  After all, it did pull you from an alternate universe.”

 

Your jaw drops to somewhere near your ankles. “You know about that?!”

 

“My dear girl, I know more about you then you can possibly comprehend.” Qui-gon sat back and props his feet up on your table.  “I know your visions and why you are here.”

 

You frown, “If you know that, then why I am here?”

 

Qui-gon tilts his head to one side, “To ensure it happens.”

 

You might as well just forget about ever picking your jaw off the ground. “You mean, ensure the fall of the republic and destruction of the Jedi?  Why?  Why would the force do something like that to its own people?!?!”

 

Qui-gon sighed, “Because, in order for creation to happen, destruction of the old way needs to take place.  By having the chosen one fall to the Sith the way you see it, it means the galaxy is only in darkness for twenty years.  If you delay the fall or it doesn’t fall the way you foresee, the darkness will last much longer.”

 

“How much longer?” you ask suspiciously

 

Qui-gon looks deeply into your eyes, “Centuries.  The Sith will be entrenched.  Billions will be enslaved and tortured.  Should Obi-wan die before he is able to pass the torch of the Jedi to the son of the chosen one, then the fire shall die out and have to be reinvented.”

 

You swallow as thoughts of dark times overwhelm you.  In your minds eye, where you see all your visions of the future, you see what Qui-gon describes.  The emperor invading a new body once every ten years.  He will have the strength of ages.  Even when the new rebels manage to oust him it’s not completely, a bloody war that lasts for centuries more will ensue.

 

You shiver as your inner sight shows you whole planets turned to death camps.  Millions of mindless force sensitive drones holding an iron control over people.  The force is merciless in showing you the vision.  You see dead bodies piled higher then imaginable.  Beautiful planets lay to waste.  Starvation, famine, disease.  Every horror comes to life in vivid Technicolor and Dolby digital 5.1 surround.

 

“No!  No more!  Please, no more.” You gasp under the pressure of the vision.  Shutting your eyes, trying to blot it out.

 

You feel a soft warm pressure on your wrist.  Opening your eyes you see Qui-gon looking at you with sympathy brimming in his eyes.

 

“Now do you understand why you are here?” Qui-gon whispers 

 

You nod numbly, “To guide you through to the destruction so it is the one that is the least permanent.  Oh god in heaven, this is too much. I don’t think I can do this.”

 

Qui-gon smiles, “You must.  You are the only one who can.”

 

“Why me?” You ask, anger building as the thought occurs to you, “Of all the people in the god damn universe to pick from, why am I being used?”

 

Qui-gon gets a mysterious look in his eyes, “If I told you, it would ruin the surprise.”

 

“Bastard.” You mutter

 

“I will have you know my parents were married before they brought me into the galaxy, thank you,” Qui-gon chuckles.

 

“I feel so alone,” you whisper to yourself

 

‘You won’t be.” Qui-gon brushes a strand of hair away from your face. “You’ll have help.  And I will always be with you, I promise.”

 

With that parting statement, Qui-gon faded from view, leaving you alone again in your rooms.

 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

             “Anakin,” you say softly as you walk into the arena. “Is it just me, or is everyone completely mental.”

            After a mourning period of one month, the Jedi decide that your training is complete and it is time to send you on your first mission.  Since you haven’t chosen anyone, the fight is going to go on.  Obi-wan didn’t try to talk to you once while you were waiting.  But every other contender seems to want to make you pick them. 

“Don’t look at me.” He says taking your hand and shrugging, “I think Jedi are by nature nuts.”

“Glad to know SOMEONE agrees with me that this is insane.” You say as you walk down the stairs to take up your place.  Your life is going to be hell from now on.  This is Lucas’s universe, important and great people always have a hard time.

 “Actually I think this is kinda cool.” Anakin says offhandedly.

“Pardon.” You reply flatly

He grins, “If I were ten years older, I would be down there.”

::He would to:: Qui-gon whispers into your mind.  You groan to yourself.  He’s been making mental comments like that all day.

::You are not helping me!:: you shoot back

Now is the day where you decide or someone decides for you.  Walking out, you look at the crowd of two hundred knights, older padawans and masters all standing in various places around the arena warming up with friends or each other.

            You sit down between Yoda and Mace Windu.  Adi Gallia leans over from behind you, “Thank you.” She says.

            ‘Why?”

            She winks, “The humanoid men practiced team fighting earlier and it was Shirt’s Versus Skins.  I got it on Holotape..”

            Ok, maybe this won’t be so terrible after all.  Even if it did feel weird that this was about you.

:: Hoping a certain someone was one of the skins?:: Qui-gon teases gently in your mind.  This was a trick that you only seem to have mastered with Qui-gon.  Well, if you don’t count that time with his apprentice, which you don’t, cause you don’t like his apprentice any more.

Yeah, right. You think, just keep telling yourself that.  Eventually when you believe it, you’ll also own the pyramids of Egypt.

:: SHUT UP:: you snap.  Now that the man was dead, he has become such a smart ass.

::My padawan is a fit and healthy young lad.  And I do notice the glances he gets so he is considered handsome.:: Qui-gon rejoins

:; His personality leaves much to be desired.:: you reply

            Mace Windu stands up and the others on the arena clear off, and those competing run into formation and drop to their knees, holding their sabers in both hands on their thighs.

            Silence in the arena as Mace raised his hands and nodded.  The Jedi, as one hop up in one smooth motion, the feet hitting the ground in unison. Their eyes down cast respectfully.

            “Do you choose among those you see?” Yoda asks at your elbow

            You scan among those on the arena.  A part of you just wants to avoid this whole insane situation and just pick one. Any one of them will do.  Looking along the rows you see that not all of the Jedi have their eyes cast downward. 

            Second to last row, third from the left was Obi-wan. The bright opalescent blue-green eyes shown out like a beacon under the sunshine streaked hair.  There was no expression on his features except in his eyes.  There was a message spoken loud and clear. You must choose him now, or he will be chosen.

            As you stare at Obi-wan, his intense eyes have softened from the brightness of halogen to gentle glow of blue fire.  You can almost hear his soft tenor whisper ‘choose me’.  A challenge melting into a soft plea. 

            :: Just choose him.:: Qui-gon whispers encouragingly without a note of teasing in his tone, ::You know you want to.::

::I can’t::: You reply sadly

            You turn your eyes away from Obi-wan and shake your head.  Mace Windu then drops his hands and the sound of two hundred lightsabers activating hits your soul like a battle cry.  A shiver goes down your spine at the sound.

            By silent signal they all start to perform a single kata.  From the looks of it, the Kata was damn near impossible.  Every once in a while, someone would stop, bow out and walk off.

            ::What’s happening?:: you ask Qui-gon mentally

            ::They did something wrong.  No point in wasting everyone’s time in remaining on the field.:: Qui-gon replies. ::Front row, second right from center just placed his left foot wrong, he’s leaving.:: 

Sure enough, the padawan in question stops, bows out and walks off.  At the door the padawan looks back at you with a wink in his brown eyes before sauntering off.

            “Do you choose him?” Mace Windu asks

            You shake you head.  The men and women on the floor flip, twirl, spin in mid air, do aerial half pikes in perfect synchronization.  At one point the person next to Obi-wan miscalculates in his jump badly and nearly takes off Obi-wan’s head.  You watch as Obi-wan twists in mid-air and deflect the blow to save himself from a permanent case of death. 

He seems to grab onto thin air again, holding himself aloft while the person who messed up scrambled out of the way, giving Obi-wan room to land.  Obi-wan then lands in the correct position and gets back in sync with the others.  An hour later when the kata is done, half of the candidates has been eliminated.

To your chagrin Ke-Fuck –n- Obi was still in the running.

:: That’s my padawan!:: Qui-gon cheers in your head.  You can feel the pride glowing in that statement.  ::I taught him everything he knows.::

::Probably why you have so little left:: you tease back

::Oh like I really need it now.::

            Next challenge is an obstacle course. The contestants cleared off the floor to rest while it is set up.  Walls started popping rhythmically up from the floor, laser walls appeared at random, and swinging pendulums from the ceiling all combine to make it a truly hellish run. A person had to complete a circuit in two minutes or less.  You smile slightly. No one could manage to make it through that in two minutes.

            They went through one at a time, each going a specific measured time as another left.  As soon as the two minutes are up the contestants have to leave the field.  Very few make it, but only through the fanciest of force moves.  Those that do make the run are exhausted both physically and mentally.

            Only one person did not leave for the race immediately.  That is Obi-wan Kenobi.  He stands on the side; his shirt is removed to reveal his strong chest.  He has a look of pure concentration in his now grey eyes, the golden hair falling over them.  Mouth set in a resolute frown in his clean shaven face.  Suddenly he looks up at you and gives you a small smile.  It plainly says he is going to win this thing.

            With that he took his place he waited an interminable moment.  Suddenly he took off, flying through the obstacle course on a force blessed path. He didn’t jump, he didn’t waver, and he just ran straight along the ground occasionally hurdling over an obstacle.  In mere moments he had completed his circuit in record breaking time.  And he didn’t waste a quarter of the energy that the other people did.

            He arrived at the other end amid cheers from his peers and looks of wonder from his competitors.  Obi-wan’s bright eyes shown out, his lips curled into a smart ass smirk.  He turns that triumphant expression towards you.  You blink and stare hypnotized. 

He had been galvanized during the past several months on his own.  What little of him that hadn’t been fine tempered and fine honed under Qui-gon’s tutelage is certainly that way now.  You are hypnotized by the sight of him, bare-chested, golden hair hanging heavy from sweat, entire being glowing with youth, health and power.  He is Eros come to life.

            “Battle will now begin.” Mace Windu says as the candidates’ pair off and fight.  This part of the contest goes on and on.  You watch the score boards as the names are filled into the tree, getting smaller and smaller, until the last contest.  Obi-wan Kenobi, a newly minted Knight, is up against Ki-Adi Mundi, far more experienced blade with a binary brain.

            This should be fun.

            Both men bow to each other, clearly exhausted and already burned and injured from previous fights.  Obi-wan immediately is on the offensive, slashing and cutting, trying to find a weakness in his opponent.  To your utter surprise, Obi-wan doesn’t do any of his fancy aerial force moves, he keeps at least one foot on the ground.

            To your further surprise you notice it was as if he was laboring under a weight.  You stretch out your new force senses and feel it isn’t Obi-wan’s fatigue that is keeping him tied to earth, but Mundi’s force abilities.  Mundi’s binary brain is allowing him to fight while he is using the force to pin Obi-wan earthbound.  Obi-wan struggles in the fight against Mundi’s saber skill and force bonds.

            Obi-wan is tiring and quickly, you can see it.  He is not going to win this fight.  They have come to a pause in the fighting as if contemplating their next moves.

            Obi-wan then look up at you.  Your heart tries to leap out of its chest as a familiar half smirk crosses his face as your eyes connect. 

The last time you saw him with that expression was right before Vader killed him.  Then Obi-wan turn that look back onto Mundi.  Obi-wan stands up straight, his eyes closed and saber in a long past familiar salute.  Mundi, seeing nothing but an opening takes a swing.

            There is a bright flash of light from the ring. When your eyes recover Obi-wan is standing over a fallen Mundi, Mundi’s own lightsaber in Obi-wan’s hands. Mundi stares cross eyed down Obi-wan’s blade.

            “You Yield?” Obi-wan ask as he stands over his clearly defeated opponent.

            “I yield.” Mundi says.

            You stand numb with horror as Obi-wan’s victory is announced and your assignment is declared. 

            Qui-gon, for once, wisely remains silent.

~*~*~*~*~*

            You return to your rooms after getting your assignment with Kenobi and settle in to read the materials. You see Qui-gon is sitting at your desk. “Hello sir.” You say friendly.

            He looks at you with eyes gone soft, “Are you ready for your first mission?”

            “Does anyone really feel ready?” You counter with a soft smile.

            “Not really.” He replies. “But you will have Obi-wan and as you know well.  He is quite a capable partner.”

            You are about to give sharp answer to that, but remembered Naboo and the death star.  If nothing else, Obi-wan Kenobi was a man you wanted with you when the chips were down and you were backed into a corner.  “Yes, I will grant you that.”

            Qui-gon stood up and walked forward, his kind blue eyes seemed sad.  The glow about him didn’t seem as bright as you remembered.  “I have to go.” He says

            “Go?  Go where?” you ask

            “I cannot stay in this plane anymore.  I must return to the force.” He says softly

            You can’t help but feel betrayed. “But… you promised you’d always be with me!”

            He steps forward and touches your cheek with his disembodied hand.  Your cheek feels a warm tingle. “So I will be.” He whispers.  “You just have to come visit me.  You know how.  Just meditate on the force and you will sense me.  Time for you to fly on your own, but I will be there if you have need of me.”

            You sniffle and try to capture that disembodied hand in your own. “I will miss you.”

            “So will I,” He murmurs.  “We will see each other again.”

            With that soft parting wish, you watch him fade away into nothingness, leaving you feeling very alone in your rooms.

~*~*~*~*~

 

 

            “Anakin, could you help me with this?” you say pointing to the sash.  Qui-gon had allowed you to get away with wearing pull over tunic and breeches while training instead of the full uniform. “I don’t know how to do this.”

            Anakin shrugs as he lays on his stomach on the bed       “Got me on that one.  Student’s uniforms are different.  We only have one tunic.  Are you sure that one goes on the inside?” he says suspiciously

            “It’s got to, it’s the thinnest.” You reason with a shrug.

            “Then where does this one with no sleeves go?” he said holding up a long wide piece of cloth with a diamond shaped hole cut into the center of the beige fuzzy nubbly cloth.

            “I haven’t the foggiest kid.” You say standing in the center of the bed room in front of the mirror.  The bags had been packed by you last night.  You had just enjoyed one last real shower in your rooms and are standing in sports bra, formal pants and boots.  All of which is damn comfortable and you would be happy to toss on the hooded, sleeveless cape and call it an outfit.

            However, the quartermaster had been in spasms of ecstasy over getting to design and make a Mage’s uniform.  He would have an apoplectic fit if you didn’t wear it.  You didn’t want the four hundred year old three foot Gecko to cork off on you. 

            “I believe,” came a melodic tenor full of mirth, “That goes on last.”

            You look towards the door way and see Obi-wan leaning against it, as cock sure as any man his age.

            “It’s called knocking.” You say flatly, “It’s usually done in polite circles.”

            “Pardon me.” He says, not sorry at all.  He raps his knuckles against the wall, “May I come in?”

            “If you insist,” You growl and get back to trying to put on the sith born clothing.

            Obi-wan greets anakin with a polite smile.  Anakin nods neutrally.  They are like two cautious cats, neither of them fully certain of the measure of the other.  You struggle valiantly with your clothing trying to tie knots but end up getting your sleeves caught in the ties.

            “This isn’t sitting right.” You complain

            “That is because you are attempting to put your head through an arm hole.  Try again.” Obi-wan’s voice is so smooth it is irritating.  Somehow, all sense of humor has drained out of you like water.

            “I think I will deliver your bags to the ship.” Ani says softly. “Then I have to head to class.”

            You pause and remove the offending article that was attacking you. “Oh.  Thank you Ani.  I couldn’t have gotten this far without you.”

            He smiles and runs over for a hug, which you gladly give him.  Jedi didn’t seem big on physical affection, and him having grown up with a mother, he was used to the attention.  He had been drooping like a wilted lily until you proved to like hugs as much as he did.  That was all he needed, a simple hug.  The Jedi just didn’t understand, they never miss what they never had.

            With that he picks up your small carisack and walks out the door.

            You turn back to Obi-wan.  Alone.  Now would be a good time for him to explain why he ran off without a good-bye.  Instead, he is picking up your shirt and stuffing your limbs into the appropriate holes.

            “I feel like an idiot.” You say bluntly, “I’m an adult. I should be able to dress myself.”

            “That is because you aren’t supposed to.” He whispers softly as he brings three ties together and makes this complicated knot that looks as if it was the only reason the knot was invented.  So the three layers of clothing can look like many more and as if they are held in place by the force alone.

            “What.” You state, staring at him.

            He continues to dress you, “You really didn’t examine what my duties are towards you.”

            “I tried; no one told me or let me find out.” You say truthfully.  “The only thing I know is you act like a glorified bodyguard.”

            He smiles slightly as he continues to tie the multitude of strings needed to hold your uniform in place. “This is part of it.  It is symbolic of what I am, what we are to each other.”

            You look at him, “Please explain.”

            He finishes off another intricate and oddly beautiful knot, “I am to care for you, and you are my responsibility.  If you are to be killed, I am to be long dead before hand.  You, as you well know, do not know how to physically defend yourself.  Compared to me, your co-ordination and strength are sorely lacking.”

            You blink in shock as he finishes dressing you.  He is right; you can’t get into this contraption alone.  But aside from getting dressed what do you need him for?

            The word “Everything” echoes in your mind in your own voice.  You begin to shake as you realize how true it can become.  So very easy to just give yourself over to him and just let him take care of you. 

            “I’m no shrinking violet.” You say almost to yourself. 

            “I know.” He says softly, responding to your need for comfort. His voice is gentle.

            “I won’t allow you to tell me to sit nicely and order room service while you go attempt to kill yourself.” You say flatly.

            “I know.” He says as he ties off your sash in the complex winding pattern..

            You don’t say it, but you are scared.  Scared for him, scared for Ani, scared for the Jedi.  Jedi aren’t supposed to feel fear, well, you are feeling enough for all of them.  But saying anything won’t do any good.  Besides, you are SUPPOSED to be mad at Obi-wan.  How he can make you forget how incredibly harsh he was to you?  You are shocked at yourself.

            You straighten your spine and stare him down.  You aren’t supposed to be here.  Interference by you could be more costly then you can possibly imagine.  He is to get as far from you as possible, not be in the thick of it.

            “I am fine.” You say firmly, turn on your heal and walk out. 

As the door slides shut you almost hear a soft, sad, “I know.”

~*~*~*~*~*~

The ride over is easy.  You only see Obi-wan at night when he undresses you and in the morning when he dresses you.  The long day is spent by him trying to fend off the attentions of the Captain’s Twilik Harem.  The Captain bought them to keep the guest’s happy.  You often engage one of the ladies in a rousing discussion, card game or holochess match.  They do their damnedest to haul Obi-wan off to bed.  Not surprising, he is sex on legs.  However, he is polite but firm in his declining of their offers.

Obi-wan is the first thing you see in the morning and the last thing you see at night.  He checks all of your food before you eat it.  He dresses you with deft hands, barely ghosting along your sides as they make the ties.  He sleeps in the chair beside your bed.  Even when you take up residence in the chair out of pique, you always wake up to find he has placed you in the bed and he slept the night in the chair.  Both of you barely speak a word during the trip.

His eyes do all the talking.  He continues to ask you with his eyes.  You always answer no.  You can’t. 

One day the Captain, a handsome rogue of a fellow, seriously flirts with you.  He reminds you of Han Solo.  You laugh back, enjoying the company of someone who speaks to you as a person.  Obi-wan glowers in the back during this encounter, but leaves you in privacy.

That night his undoing of the ties that bind are rougher then usual.  His face is set in a resolute mask.  Before he can snap one of the delicate ties you whisper, “I’m just going to bed Obi-wan. There is no hurry.”

His lids slip shut as he slowly lets out a breath, holding the current tie in his hands.  When he opens his eyes, they are much softer and much calmer.  He continues to untie the tunics, slowly this time.  It is very nice listening to him breathe.

When he is done you look him in the eyes. “Thank you.” You say softly, as you do every time he helps you like this. 

“You are welcome my lady mage.”

You bite your lip to keep from snapping at him saying you aren’t HIS mage.  You aren’t anyone’s mage and won’t BE anyone’s if you can help it.

Once again he waits with his back turned while you slip into soft sleep pants and shirt.  You slip into bed.  Despite your protests he throws your woolen cape over the tops of the blankets.  Then he wraps himself in his cloak and takes his strategic position in the chair farthest from both you and the door.  Broader field of vision, wider field of fire.

He is wrapped in his own cloak so only the tip of his nose and the end of his chin was visible.  “Are you cold?” you ask concerned.  “Are you comfortable?”

“Yes, lady mage.  I am quite comfortable.  I have slept in places far less restful.” He whispers, eyes barely visible behind the locks of blonde hair.

“Oh.  Are you sure?” you say, unbelievably uncomfortable with having someone as a servile position.

“Quite positive, I would never lie to you.  Now sleep.” He says.

At which point the world fuzzes out.  Your last thought is the idea that you really need to convince Obi-wan you do get enough sleep and that a Mind Whammy was not necessary all the time.

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

You stare at the huge room with precious stone, marble, metals and gems decorating the walls, ceiling and floor.  The room is so large you can hear echos in the chamber.  There are plush pillows with slip covers of Silk and Satin.  Curtains to divide up the room into pleasant nooks. All in all it was a room to end all rooms, a romantic getaway that Aphrodite would have approved of.  You don’t even know where it ends. 

And this is your bathroom. 

“Obi-wan” You say mouth hanging open and staring at the decadence of the place.

Obi-wan enters from what you suppose is the living room and stops next to you looking at you. “Yes?”

“Where is the sink?” you say holding up your tooth brush.

He chuckles, taking the brush from your numb fingers as you take in the decadence of the place again and again.  He places the brush on a rather innocuous shelf.

“That’s the sink?” you say disbelievingly.

He touches a tile and the sink appears by a depression showing up in the middle of the marble as if the marble was really made of sand.  Your eyes nearly pop out of your head.  He smiles at the lost look on your face.

“I know, I felt the same when I first left the temple.” He smirks.

“How did you know that is where it is?” you ask in wonder

“I didn’t.  I used the force.” He grins

“Wow,” you say, “In that case use your Jedi Abilities and find me the refresher.  It was quite a long ride here to the Palace of decadence.”

He pulls aside a rather heavy cloth and smiles bowing.  After taking care of business and feeling refreshed, you step out and wave around, “Alright, where is the bed?”

“I believe anywhere we fall down.  If I understand the phrase said in the hall way correctly, this is a honeymoon room.  One for lovers.” He smiles with a teasing grin in his eyes.  That “You can’t afford to fuck me” smile has changed to  a “I’ll spend the day ruining you for other men” grin.

“You learned how to speak their language.” You say simply

He leads you around the chamber by the hand, “Yes.  It is a rather easy to learn language.  Apparently from the comments of the servants, they have pinned us as newly weds.”        

You blink at him, “Wow, I didn’t know you could learn languages so fast.”

He smiles as he continues to tug you through the Jungle of Silk, satin, lace and velvet.  “I speak thirteen different languages well enough to get by.  It is remarkably easy to learn.”

“I don’t understand a word you just said.” You reply mystified. “But it sounds good.”  Suddenly you trip and completely lose your balance.  You get that sickening feeling of being completely out of control of your body.  Obi-wan makes a grab for you to help steady you, but apparently the slippery silken pillows foil over twenty years of training and co-ordination.  You end up in a tangled heap of silken sheets, slippery satin pillows and Jedi Knight.

When you land he lands half on top of you and wraps you in his arms and legs.  As he starts to nuzzle your neck you hear him whisper in your mind, ::They think  we are newlyweds.  We must make it look convincing.::

You giggle.  Partly out of nervousness, partly out of the fact his hair and eye lashes are tickling you.  He looks up. “You are ticklish?  Hmm…”

You weren’t prepared for the attack that comes.  His fingers started to tickle and attack anything that provokes a reaction from you.  You giggle, squeak and squirm.  You try to kick him but that had about as much effect as kicking a brick wall.

Finally he manages to pin you with his body in the pillows.  Time seems to hold still.  The feel of his body pressed against you, the sheer heat reaching you through the many layers of clothing is hypnotic. 

“Excuse me Jedi.  We request your presence at dinner,” a tin sounding voice comes over a speaker.

That wakes you up from the daze you are in.  You come to your senses, realizing that both your and his lips are barely a centimeter apart.  So close you can feel the warmth of his breath caressing your lips.  His bright eyes are closed and he is moving closer.

You gasp and squirm out from under him quickly, “We better go.  We have to go attend an official dinner.”

You see him lay on the pillows.  He lowers his face into the pillows for the space of time it take for him to mutter something guttural and in a tone of a colorful metaphor.  When he raises his head he takes a deep breath and stands up. “Alright, let’s go, but don’t you DARE get out of my line of sight at any time.”

You roll your eyes but stand at his side with a smile plastered on your face. “Is this level of luxury normal?”

He nods, “Yes.  The more wealth the planet displays, the more aid they are available for in a disaster.”

“What do you mean?” you ask curious.

He straightens your tunic with a smile, checking the knots.  “Part of membership in the Republic is a kind of galactic insurance fund. When a planet enters the republic its wealth is assessed.  In the event of a disaster, they can receive aid in an amount based on that value.  This luxury is simply an attempt to earn a bit extra in assessment.  This is why most applications to the republic are done in times of economic boosts.”

“Oh.” You say intelligently.  “Well, are we underdressed?”

He smiles and takes your arm, “No, we are ignorant Jedi.”

You chuckle, “Can you tell me how much this would be assayed as?”

“Hmm… about average.” He says taking your hand, “Shall we?”

“Let’s.” you nod and straighten your spine.  You are to be a mage, then god damn it; it’s high time you act like it.

********************&

You stare at the mound of food in front of you.  The people obviously understood that Jedi don’t accept gratuity or gifts.  However they have given you a fabulous room, sit you on luxurious pillows, provide wonderful entertainment, and excellent food.

“Obi-wan.” You mutter next to him.

“yes?” he says tearing his eyes from the gyrating dancers, who were displaying various notable appendages.  Those chickies were flirting shamelessly with him but light heartedly.  One girl dressed in a green bird costume shakes a tail feather at Obi-wan with a pouty look before going back to her dancing.

“Enjoying yourself?” you grin, “Eat too much more and you’ll be one very fat Jedi.”

“What about yourself?” He asks

You grin, “Remove sharp objects before undressing me tonight. You just might burst me and get covered in half a dozen semi digested sweets”

He chuckles, “I will be most certain to trim my nails before I handle you.”

You listen to the giggles from those who stand around you.  You found it curious that everyone seemed to understand basic, even the servants.  It was a nice touch but rather eerie.

Just then one of the hosts croaks out something and everyone laughs. 

“What did he say?” you ask him

He looks at you for a while, “You don’t wanna know.”

You stare at him as he grabs you by the waist and bends you backward.  Your head is still spinning when his lips connect with yours.  Your jaw goes slack from shock.  Bent as you are, unless you resort to some tricks that would injure him, you are stuck.  His kiss is heart stopping and wonderful.  It warms you straight to your toes. 

To his credit he doesn’t deep it.  He keeps it soft, sweet and gentle.  It is wonderful and you could definitely get used to this. One strong hand holds you to him, the other one combs in your hair.  You wrap your arms around him, just to hang on.  Certainly not to feel his strong back muscles as they hold you close, or his warmth.  Nope.  Definitely not that.  You are still mad at him.

And Denial is just a river in Egypt.

You reach up and try to prolong the kiss just a little longer.  You can’t remember the last time anyone has kissed you like this.  Before you can pinpoint the difference between his kiss and everyone else’s he pulls away and stands you upright.

The comment of “Get a room” is one of those comments that is translated by tone alone.  Everyone can hear it.  You stand holding on to him, which was a good thing.  If you didn’t, you’d have fallen over.

He croaks something out to his guests and they laugh.  You look at him.  He gives you a smirk and his eyes light up with mirth.

“Nope” you say, “Now I Really don’t wanna know.”

********************8

When you arrive back at your room you stare at him. “Mister.”

“Yes.” He says simply

“You can put me down now.” You say wiggling your feet that are in the air.

“Why should I?” he asks nearly laughing.  “In this culture newlyweds are considered near holy.”

“I beg your pardon?” you say as he carries you through the silken curtains and down a path.

“This culture worships a pair of gods, A God and a Goddess.  Every growing season is the ‘marriage’ of their deities.  Fertility of the planet is ensured by couples, like us… giving appropriate worship.” He almost smirks

“You better not be laughing.” You say flatly. “Or lying?”

“Now why would I be laughing?” he stares at you as you brush a curtain out of the way. “Thank you.  And why would I lie?  I am rather hurt you’d think that I would resort to a melodramatic trick like this?”

You sigh and lean against his shoulder and whisper in his mind ::Can I be serious for a moment::

::Of course:: Suddenly you feel yourself tumbled into the pillows with a Knight pinning you to the bed.  You feel those lips start to work at your neck.  You shiver from head to toe at the touch. :: Oh dear… are you cold?::  The SOB is laughing at you.

You roll your eyes into the back of your head. ::NO!  I am trying to be serious!  Back OFF::

He gives a wince at the mental shout but settles for nuzzling your neck.

::All right, what is going on in that mind of yours.:: his voice whispers seriously.

::SOMETHING is wrong.:: you cry out.  That sense you get of the future is just nagging you to pieces.  ::The walls, above our heads it’s only painted.  The Silk isn’t good silk, it’s cheap.  Everyone knows basic.::

He shrugged and you feel the ripple of muscles from that movement.  Blink and wonder when he had gotten Jedi robes that THIN. ::Let me play the opposing side.  This doesn’t seem completely abnormal.  Most places I have been to want to appear wealthier then they are.::

::But…:: you struggle to put words to your instincts. ::Their culture, is like the norm of all the cultures in the galaxy.  The two deities, the traditions just seem a mish mash of things.  Hell the language is functional but unbelievably simple.  There are no evolved words.  Like sadist.::

:;Sadist?::

::It’s a word derived from my planet’s history.  There was a nobleman named Marquis De Saud.  There were sex parties going on at the time but his involved getting sexual pleasure out of someone else’s pain and suffering.  There are no evolved words like that.  All similes and metaphors are trivial.  Nothing to indicate a deep culture.  Just a functional language.:: you whisper.

You could feel his frown, ::What are you trying to say?  Are you saying this entire set up is one large CON?  Impossible::

Your mind is working a mile a minute and Obi-wan stops grinding his hips against yours. ::Yes.  Not as impossible as you think.  There have been LOTS of entries this year.  The senate is overworked.  The people do the paperwork are either bored or bought.  People sent out here are bored senators and assistants looking for another free vacation.::

::I don’t know…:::

::Why haven’t they shown us what is outside the palace?  Why are we essentially locked in?  Why did the so called locals fly us on their ship instead of letting us take ours?  That Twil-lik harem I know is not standard issue on YT-1400’s.:: you point out.

He chuckles, ::You have been doing your homework.::

::Look, just cause I am unhappy about being shoved into this job doesn’t mean I will do it half assed.  I can’t learn a new language, but I sure as hell can ask someone what something means.  I can use a universal translator as well as the next gal.:: you sigh as you hold him close as the import of what you are saying hits you.  If you are right, you and Obi-wan are trapped in a prison with literally hundreds of guards.

He hugs you close to, ::Don’t be scared.  We don’t know this for a fact yet.::

::One way to find out.:: you whisper and open your shields to enclose him.  He can use the force to scan, you may be able to feel general shapes with your energy like hundreds of tentacles, but Obi-wan can ask the force to tell him things.

::Drop them completely:: he encourages, ::I can’t see out and I WILL protect you.::

With a shudder you drop them all.  You feel him reach out.  After a few heart beats you feel him come back to himself.

:;What?:: you ask

He looks up at you, ::We aren’t on a planet.  We are on an old Luxury Cruiser.  Sith fly away with it, I hate it when you are right about things like this.  God they only need two thousand people to pull this one off.  Enough to look like a cheering crowd.  Several trillion split amongst two thousand is a hell of a lot.::

::We need proof.:: you say simply ::Proof of the plan and who is in on this massive heist, what their plan would have been and live to tell the tale.::

He nods, ::Right.::

::Alright Knight.  I’ve acted like my job.  You plan how to find the stuff and how to get our carcasses out of here in one piece.:: You say simply

::Does this mean you accept me?:: he whispers.

:: Get real.:: you reply rolling him onto his back and nuzzling his neck for the benefit of the cameras you are damn sure are there now. ::I am not taking anyone.::

He sighs heavily and frowns, ::We need to make this look convincing.::

::No we don’t::

::huh::

::You can’t hold your liqueur.:: you smirk a bit before sending him the mother of all Mind Whammies and sending him to sleep.

“Obi-wan,” you say out loud. “OBI_WAN” you growl as if annoyed.  You are greeted with only a soft snore from him.  You chuckle and for the benefit of the listening devices, “Next time, I’m cutting you off at two ales.”

Then you snuggle down into his arms and try to sleep yourself, hoping his warmth and solid presence would counteract the nightmare of smiling faces you have walked into.

**************8

The next morning you wake up to see a pair of very annoyed eyes staring down at you.

::Don’t ever do that again:: He growls.  ::How am I to protect you if I am unconscious!::

You glare at him, ::Oh yeah, like sending ME to la la land while we were on the ship was a good idea.::

He frowns, ::Then there was no perceived danger.  I am to care for you.::

:: You Son of a Bitch.:: You snarl

His face grows harder, ::Oh sure.  Like you can protect yourself against an assassin.::

::Like you can know down to the second when that assassin is coming.:: you growl back at him, ::Get this into your head.  I can carry my own weight.::

::Get THIS into your head.  We are in this together no matter how temporary you think this is.:: He glares down at you then rolls his eyes  ::  Damn it… it’s like I am thirteen all over again!::

He then pulls out of your mind and gets up to get dressed.  You sit and shake your head.  It’s true.  There are parallels.  He feels he is destined to be by you side forever and you know it as well from your trip to the future.  But something in you still fights it.  You keep seeing Old Ben’s angry face as he reveals you hurt him so deeply he was still reeling from it in the desert twenty years later.

You don’t want to choose him out of any selfish desire.  Your saving Qui-gon from death at the hands of the sith proved that you can change the future, but if ‘the force’ really wants something to happen, it will.

Besides, you are still hurt at him leaving you like that.

::Look, I want to make sure I choose the right person for the RIGHT reason Obi-wan.:: you offer. He simply sighs and helps you off the floor and helps you to dress as always. ::But now is not the time to talk about this::

:;Right, we have a bridge to break into:: he nods.

::Now?:: You stare at him aghast.

::Good time as any.  The ship is asleep.:: He looks at you ::Best hit them before they have time to get suspicious.::

You nod and take his hand, He pulls you behind him, ::Stay close.::

As the two of you creep into the hallway, you grab his hand and grip it as tight as humanly possible and tug him towards one side of the hall.

::But the Camera…:: He murmured

::The guard isn’t looking at it, and won’t for the next ten minutes.  He’s watching a woman in a shower.:: You reply flatly.  ::In a few minutes he’ll switch to the next camera and bring up some lady in a bathtub. We can move then::

Obi-wan’s eyebrows arched to his hairline, ::All right.  You lead.::

 

~*~*~*~*~*~

 “Well that was memorable” you mutter as you haul an unconscious conspirator into the closet.

Obi-wan twirls his lightsaber.  The green blade flashed before shutting off. “Thank you telling me about those last ones.  I didn’t know you could tell me about what another person’s battle plans were so accurately you could set up for it ten minutes before hand.”

You shudder, “Yes, Qui-gon trained me to be able to give instructions in a battle.  But it’s not pleasant to foresee someone’s death.  There is just something unpleasant about walking past someone and knowing how and when they will die.”

He winces, “I can understand that. Now start searching the computer for the future plans, I will look for a list of conspirators.”

You frown as you are searching.  A long time net searcher, you know any complex plan is best documented to keep all the lies straight.  Then you pull up all the memos and do a search on anything that mentions planet names, archeological references, galactic events, or anything else that came to your mind.  After what seems like an eternity but was really only seconds popped up an innocuously entitled note entitled “Sumatra.”

You open it and read.  Your jaw drops.  There was a planet that in ancient times was inhabited by a civilization long ago but was abandoned.  The excavators didn’t dare land since the sun was unstable.  Once every two thousand years the sun pulsed like a quark and wiped out EVERYTHING with its radiation.  The excavators were bored and wanted to go on something else after a while.  The Civilization was boring to investigate.  This was filed about a thousand years ago.

Guess what sun was ready to go again in six months.

You immediately download that file and anything referenced from and to it into a datacron. “You got anything?”

He holds up a cron with a smile, “Contracts, lists of ‘employees and percentages of the cuts they will get’, along with financial information that accountants might find bribes inside of.”

You grin but stop as a vision appears to you.  You see the door to the room imploding the the room being swarmed with guards.  With discipline long trained, you carefully mentally rewind the vision before the implosion of the door and see you and Obi-wan exiting the room through what looked like an ordinary wall panel.

“Obi-wan, we have a problem.  The door is about to be blown in and there is an army on the other side.” You say flatly as you run over to search the panel.

“What are you looking for?” Obi-wan asks

“There is something behind here.  If we can only get at it.  It’s our only escape.” You say urgently.

He uses the force and picks the lock open with his mind and the panel opens to revel what looked like the insides of a small escape pod or shuttle.

“Darling, I am liking your talent more every day.” He said as he ran inside a head of you and immediately sat in the pilot seat.  The door shuts just as you feel the ship rock from the explosion opening the door.

“They know we are in here.” You gasp, “They are coming!”

He quickly cold starts the engines and undocks from the ship, “Strap in.”

You are about to get into the co-pilot seat when you feel the small ship lurch out of the docking bay.  Your face ends up driving into the armrest.  The pain flares along the side of your face and you can tell your eye is going to puff up into a very bad shiner and you are not going open your eye in little while.

“Sorry about that.” He says.  “Strap in next time.”

He does another evasive maneuver that this time has the benefit to send your rump flying into the seat.  You grab the strap and pull it over your lap.  Once strapped in, you stare out the view screen and see many many bolts flying by you.

“Who would have thought an old pleasure cruiser would be armed this much.” You gasp out as another shot rocks the tiny ship.

“Not really a shock” he replies making another move that makes the stars blur and your stomach fly into your neck.  However his voice remains conversational, like he was walking along the temple halls. “Pleasure cruisers are armed greatly because often times the passengers are wealthy, powerful or both.  A pleasure cruiser would be a plum for a pirate.  So cruisers are equipped with ion cannons, towers..”

Suddenly a fighter screamed past while firing. “Lemme guess… that’s not standard issue to the cruiser.”

Knowing there is nothing helpful you could do at this moment since his prescience is more useful then yours is, you decide to help by closing your eyes and trying not to lose your lunch.  After a few heart pounding minutes you decide it might be alright to open your eyes.

Immediately you wish you hadn’t.  All you see is a very big asteroid field.   And green laser fire whizzing past you. “Oh god, Obi-wan don’t tell me.”

He smirks, “Strap in, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride.”

Thank the makers of this thing they put in an ‘Oh SHIT’ handle above your head for you to hang on to.  He flies around the asteroids, your stomach has a permanent commuting ticket between your neck and your toes.  To calm yourself and prevent your lunch from re-introducing it’s self you turn away from the screen and fall onto the driver.

His face is an intense mask of concentration.  His mouth is closed and in a frown.  Your breath catches as you stare at the incredible eyes, focused on flying.  His hair flops over into his eyes in a golden waterfall.  He licks his lips as he continues to defy death.  Suddenly a smile breaks on his face, “We made it!”

You look out the viewer and see that you are in the clear.  You smile and laugh.  You leap out of your seat and hug him, Obi-wan embraces you back.

“Thank you.” You smile into his eyes. “That was wonderful.  I have never seen anything like it.”

He sighs and embraces you in a hug, “I couldn’t have done it without you.  But don’t thank me yet.  We used up most of the energy stores on this ship evading capture through the asteroid field.  We will need to land soon.”

“Any place look good?”

“The only place we can land is a planet currently experiencing an ice age.  Mostly conifer forests, cold.  Not Hoth.  It will be cold at night but survivable.” He replies, “But we have a problem.”

“What?”

He stares at you with sorrowful eyes, “I doubt we can land, I don’t think we have the power for both slowing and shielding for rentry.  We could just sit and wait but we aren’t anywhere near a shipping lane. No one might see us for weeks, maybe years.  We have barely enough power for sustaining a day or two.”

“Rescue signal.” You asked hopefully

He sighed, “Checked and damaged beyond repair.  Even if we could get it working, it would no doubt signal the cons where we are and we’d be dead as well.”

“Damn…. DAMN.” You swear

“I’m sorry.” He whispers, eyes down cast.

“So am I.” You stand up and lean against the control panel.

“What are your sorry for?” he asks softly

“Well, evidence will be in tact in this thing but far past the time it will be any use.  These people will have bought planets and disappeared.  The republic might get the little peons but the big fish will get away.” You gripe.  “Ugh, I can’t believe we came this far only to be stopped now!”

He is watching you with a soft smile on his face.

 “What?” you ask upset.  To your intense surprise he drops to his knees at your feet.

“It has been my honor to serve with you, and my honor to be one of the first to meet you.” He says, “And you have finally accepted your path.”

You grin at him, “Yeah well, sucks don’t it.  I finally… what did you say?”

He looks up, “You have accepted your path.”

“Wait a minute.  I’m a prophet.  Why can’t I just search and see which course of action will be the right one?”

“It’s worth a try.” He replied and watched as you sit in the chair and try to settle into the meditation state Qui-gon had shown you.

After a frustrating few minutes you open your eyes and growl.

Obi-wan is at your side in an instant, “Having trouble?”

You nod and cast him a pleading look.  He places a hand on your forehead and you feel him give you a helpful nudge in the right direction.  Soon you are sinking fast into that netherworld you had seen before, so long ago with the path made of blue and green.

This time Qui-gon greets you. “Welcome child!  Back so soon?”

“I need your help.” You speak one spirit to another.  “How to I see different futures from the outcomes of a choice not made yet?”

He smiles, “Make the decision in your mind, then watch the future unfold.”

With that he fades away leaving you to stare at the blackness around you.  Your mind settles on making the decision of going for the planet.  You find through Obi-wan’s fabulous skill and his decision to use the energy on shields and try to lose speed with flying skill, you both survive the subsequent crash, though injured.  But you land in the middle of oncoming inclement bad weather and you get the distinct feeling your future there is uncertain.

Turning your mind to the next decision, you activate the homing signal.  Not long afterwards, you watch the con artists shoot up your ship and kill you.  Not a good choice.

Next you turn to either flying towards a shipping lane and hoping for pick up.  You get the sense that the ship you are in will be found.  When and if you and obi-wan are alive are a crap shoot.

You finish looking and see that Qui-gon is watching you with a smile on his lips.  “Thank you, once again.” You say.

He smiles, “You are welcome.  As a question for you, is it worth waiting in line for an amusement park ride?”

“Depends on the ride.” is your reply

“Remember that.” He said

With that you part and a quickly feel yourself coming back to your own body.  You open your eyes still feeling rather disoriented and uncomfortable.  You didn’t need foresight to know that you weren’t going to be doing that too often.

“Fly us to that planet.” you say definitively

“Are you sure?” He asked

“Our future after we land is rather muddy, but at least we make it past this challenge.  Your skill in flying saves us.”

His jaw tightens. “Then to the planet we shall go.  I will let you know when we are there.”

“why?”

“We need to conserve air.  So…. Out you go!” his hand waves and you feel the darkness come over you.

“You son of a bah….” You promptly pass out.

**************8

“…Bitch!” you say as you wake up.  He chuckles to himself and sits back down.

“Alright, we are here.  Strap in and get ready.  This is going to be a bumpy ride.” he says

You place your hands on the console and close your eyes.  As you feel yourselves descend and the ship start to shake and heat up.

You can’t breathe.  You can’t think.  You just hang on as you feel as if your entire body is diving through molten metal. Finally the heat passes.  It takes you a while to figure it out.  You open your eyes to see blue skies, green trees and white snow.

You blink away the pain and sit back in the seat as Obi-wan struggles with the controls. 

The ship lurches and once again you are thrown, but this time, you are too tired to care.

**************8

Someone is calling your name.  You are cold.  Very very cold .  There is a roaring in your ears. You are lying in a distinctly uncomfortable position.  He is still screaming your name.

“Stop yelling you Idiot.” You moan.

“Where are you?” he calls.

“I’m over here.” You groan.  Finally you open your eyes and see that you are in the midst of twisted burning wreckage of a ship.  Obi-wan’s worried eyes appear in your vision.

“Can you move? Can you feel this?” he asks quickly.  His hands start to feel up your legs to see if they are broken.  However, the sensation of those hands creeping up your legs causes your lungs to hitch and breathing to stop.  Oh yeah, you feel those hands all right.  Your nerve endings are broadcasting loud and clear.

“Mister, you keep moving those hands any farther up, I will expect a marriage proposal.” You blurt out

He lets out a breath and leans back on his heels, “You scared me back there.”

“I am figuring we made it.  I am in too much pain to be dead.” You grin up at him and cough.  “Sir, let me guess.  We can’t rest, we gotta get a move on cause either the locals will sacrifice us, there is a blizzard coming, or you got evidence someone is on our tail.”

He chuckles, “Only one of them this time.  Blizzard.  Big one.  The force is causing my hair to stand on end.  Come on.  Can you walk?”

You nod and he helps you stand.  You notice him wince slightly.  You stop him and pull aside his cloak to see the twin blaster bolts that have clipped the left side of his ribcage and were bleeding.

“I think I better ask you that question.” You say flatly, “God… That is a lot of blood.”

He ignores your concern. “This place isn’t much shelter and frankly I don’t  really trust it to stay stable much longer.  I don’t know if there are any locals but frankly I don’t want to be here if they find us.”

“One alien is a visitor, two is an invasion?”

“Correct.” He smiles, “Now, let’s go.”

You lean against each other and help each other out of the twisted wreckage.  Obi-wan takes charge of the evidence you both gathered and keeps it safe.  You both limp out into the ice and snow. You look up at the sky and foresee a wall of white lasting a very long time. “I’d say we got a big one brewing.  Do we have supplies to hole up for a good while.”

He grins and waves his hand.  A panel bursts opens to reveal two suitcase looking things that looked to contain emergency survival kits.

“Hope there is a medical supply kit in there.” You say hefting a case and he takes the other.

“Certainly, Gods above and below I think I detest Ice the most.” He says simply

“Pardon?”

“Of all the environmental survival tours I have done, I think I hated cold the most.  I was never able to get warm.  I would rather deal with Rainforests with dangerous animals and plants, deserts with sweltering heat and little water.” He groused.

“Why don’t you like the cold?” you ask

The two of you limp along together, looking for what exactly, you don’t know.  But you will know when you find it.  “I have always had a nightmare.  That this is how the universe will end.  In Cold and Ice.  Fire and Passion I can deal with.  Simple and direct motives and plans.  Cold revenge is long planned, twisted and hard to see.  Ice seems to be truly darkside.  I would rather be up to my neck in fire, then buried in snow.”

You nod and just keep walking along, “I prefer ice myself.  Ice is logical and logic can be detected and dissected.  Passion is spontaneous and is hard to follow.”

“Thinker.” He teases

“Emotive twit.”

“Brainiac”

“Neanderthal.”

“What?  Darling, if you must call me names at least call me some I understand.”

“Unevolved humaniod.” You reply

“Ouch.  That is harsh.” he smiles

You stop and look to the side, “You see that clump of trees?”

“yes?” he replies.

“I remember as a kid that a clump of conifers that grew close together had a lovely little area in the center of it.  Basically all the branches inside it were dead.  Once I picked them down, I had a nice little room.  Once the snow fell it was like an Igloo.” You say conversationally.

He suddenly grabs your head and kisses you fiercely but quickly. “Thank you.  My god, I never thought of that.”

The both of you squeeze into the branches with copious amounts of snow falling into every crack and crevice of your clothing.  Once inside, both you and Obi-wan make short work of the dry branches.  Ever the girl guide, you save the branches in case you ever make a fire.  Some clearing reveals a nice bed of pine needles, very thick and very soft.

Soon you and Obi-wan make a cozy little room together.  The emergency shelter cloth is hung around in a makeshift tee-pee.  And a tiny brazier like heater is making the room a manageable temperature. The sleep rolls are paper thin but Obi-wan swore they would last the cold provided we slept according to emergency situations.

Once the bed is spread you immediately push Obi-wan onto it.  He smiles at you with a cocky grin, “Oooo.”

“Shaddup.  You are injured worst of both of us.  We need to do something about it.” You grin pulling out the med kit, “Now strip ye daft bastard.  I can’t work through two tunics and a shirt.”

You decide it’s better for your sanity not to watch as he takes off the clothing so you busy yourself gathering materials.  Qui-gon had  shown you around a med kit.  Now you are grateful for it.

You only look at the injury when you look up. You do not look at the rest of him.  Your world narrows to cleaning and treating the wounds.  You bite your lower lip as you concentrate on making the wound clean without hurting him.  You draw a breath and try to send a cool soft healing to that wound.  Try is the operative word.  As soon as you reach for your own abilities you feel dizzy and nearly pass out.

Obi-wan moves to reach out and steady you.  You nod your thanks and continue to attach the bandages.

“What was that?” you ask

He sighs, “You may be explosive in energy but you do have a limit.  You probably have never exhausted yourself this much before.”

“actually I have, right in the beginning.” You smile.

“How?” he sounds shocked and more then a little concerned

“Council and healers wanted to test me and each wanted their individual tests.” You say. 

His face grows dark and highly upset, “How dare they force you into exhaustion so early.”

“It’s alright.  Qui-gon saved me.” You smile

He chuckles, “So I heard.  He was right, you needed someone to look out for you personally.”

“Obi-wan…” you say warningly sensing where this conversation was going and really not wanting to have it.

“If you had someone to look after you, you won’t need to worry.” He continues as you move away from him to put supplies away. “It’s only logical.  Someone to watch your back, be it in a physical battle or a political one.  Can you deny you need help?”

You stop and sigh. “No.”

He smiles slightly, for such a small word, it was conceding quite a victory for him.“You know that most of the others want to be here only because of the glory.  Granted after a little while they will stay for the reasons I come.”

“Any why are you here?”

“Because I care and respect you as a person.” He says

“Yeah, right.  You respect me as a person.   So much respect you left me without saying good bye.”  As you said it, you realize how shallow a reason it was to remain made at him.  Any normal being would have forgiven him by now, but you were clinging to it as a reason to keep him at arms length.  You aren’t sure you really want to know your real reasons for it.

“What?” he says astonishment lacing his voice.  His voice is increasing in volume. “What does that have to do with what we were talking about?”

“It has EVERYTHING to do with it.”

“You MUST choose!”

“I won’t choose anyone!”

“Why?”

“I don’t want to give someone a suicide assignment.”

“We are asking for it.”

“I won’t pick you!  I’m afraid you WON’T die!”

He leans back on his elbows, “Oh that is reassuring. For your information, I was ordered to leave.”

“What?”

“That same loving council that ran you into the ground ordered me to leave you without a word.”

“Why?” you ask with your heart pounding terrified this last defense would be taken away.

“Because in their own words,” he spat, “I had an unfair advantage over the other Candidates given that I have a previous friendship with you.  They told me telling me if I wanted a chance at your future I had to leave.  I asked them to tell you I said good bye, but apparently they had a selective memory.”

“Oh.” You wonder.   From the tone of his voice he fought that decision viciously.  This certainly put a new twist on things.  Your anger melts out of you like water. 

“Now you know.” He says, “Will you chose?”

“no.” you say stubbornly

“Oh for the love of the FORCE WHY NOT?  How much more must I prove?” he demands his blue eyes were hot flames. “I have done everything anyone has asked of me. No one else cares about YOU personally near as much as I do.  Why in force won’t you choose me?”

It must be the sight and sound of the normally stoic Jedi losing his temper that knocks the truth right out of you. “I love you, I’ll have your life and death on my conscience, that’s why!”

Immediately you wish you could yank those words back down your neck and into the sub conscience where they belong.  Your vision blurs with tears and you clap your hand over your mouth to prevent further damage.  But the horse has already escaped the barn.

That is why you fought it.  You suddenly realize you had been steadily fighting against this in the hopes of not caring a bean about Obi-wan and being able to carry out this mission of aiding destroying the Jedi, bringing the empire into existence, and hiding Luke without making it personal.  Now that you cared deeply about Obi-wan, you knew doing this was going to be ten times harder.   You were going to ensure the destruction of the one thing he dedicated his life to, and you could never tell him about it.

Oh the secrets we must keep from our loved ones.

You turn away from him and bury your face in your hands as the first choking sobs exited your lungs and the hot tears start to sting your cheeks.  You curl into a fetal position and just let the tears rain down.

You vaguely feel a pair of arms wrap around you and pull you lie down.  You wrap your arms greedily around this comfort. “I don’t want this” you sob, “Take it all away.  This is too much.  I don’t want this.”

“Is that why you don’t want me?” he whispers, “It would mean accepting a destiny you don’t understand, much less want.  Surely someone has told you the future is fluid.”

You snort, “My choices are no choices at all.”

He nods, “Why worry, if this is the best course?”

“You’ll.. you’ll ha-have a fate worse then death.”  You sob clutching him close, as if trying to shield him from his future pain.

“I accept it.” He says firmly

You look up at him, “what?  How can you, you don’t even know what it is.  If you knew better, you’d get as far away from me as you could.”

He tucks a stray strand behind your ear, “For the chance of time with you now, I’ll accept any pain you foresee I may have in the future.  It will be worth it.”

“How can you be so sure?” you beg.

He tilts your chin towards him and he takes a single soft kiss. “I have faith the force won’t send me anything I can’t handle.  And so should you.”

You snort, “I wish it didn’t have this much faith in us.”

“A bitter life makes the sweet spots all the sweeter.” He smiles. “Tell me.  If you went back to your normal life and all this was taken from you at your request, wouldn’t you spend forever wondering.. ‘what if’?”

Now is a moment that seems to hang forever.  You can’t think, your brain is frozen.  You have to feel it.  You search for what you feel beyond the fear.  All you feel is the heat of Obi-wan under you as you lie on top of him and the icy cold air at your back.

So, when in the midst of a moral dilemma, you dive.  You move forward as fast as possible, swoop down and capture his lips in a desperate kiss.  Your heart is pounding from exhilaration and fear.  You feel terrified, electrified and alive.  This moment was lasting an eternity and you would remember it crystal clear years from now.

Obi-wan relaxes under your demands and lets you plunder his mouth for what ever you need.  His arms come to rest on your hips and rub circles there.   Utterly calm and complacent under your feverish caresses.  Your body is trembling with need under the onslaught of several thousand years of evolution.  You have just come through several life and death situations.  Your body clearly wants one hell of a reminder it was still alive.

You pull away reluctantly to gauge his reaction.  He smiles sweetly up at you as he traces your facial features with one hand. “When you decide something, you don’t hold back do you?”

You smile at him, “Well, there is one advantage to this life, it promises to be one hell of a ride.”

His lids lower so his eyes smolder blue green fire, “I think I can promise you that much.”

*******************************8

Warmth and contentment are the only two things you feel.  You are happy to simply lie there in Obi-wan’s arms and simply be.  You aren’t a mage, you aren’t someone who’s destiny seems to be to ensure this galaxy stays heading towards it’s train wreck.  You simply are.

Nope, Momma was right when she said there was nothing like the feeling of being completely and totally fucked.

Arms and legs tangled together, his chest makes a wonderful pillow.  He makes a contented groan and you sigh, both snuggling closer.  You look up into his eyes and he smiles down at you.

“Are you cold?” he whispers and strokes your bare back under the sleeping bag.

You shiver, “A little.”  Physically you are warm enough, but for some reason you can’t get used to the idea of that warmth from a blanket the width of a sandwich baggie.  You know it’s purely psychological but to your mind the thicker the blanket, the warmer it is.

He reaches over you and pulls his cloak over the blankets. “There.  That should help.”

“Thank you.” You smile and snuggle closer. 

He gives you a slightly victorious smirk, “This means I win.”

You groan, “Enjoy it while it lasts.  I won’t make the next one this easy.”

He continues to grin, “That is perfectly fine.  I didn’t expect this to be easy.  Nothing worth having ever is.”

“You are just very satisfied with yourself, aren’t you.” You poke his chest.

“Yes, yes I am”

“Well, this just goes to show you one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“The background noise of the universe is a laugh track.”

**************************8

Two days later you are rescued from the hostile planet and made interstellar waves with your uncovering of the Sting operation.  You and Obi-wan decide to let the newly wed story you concocted for the investigation hold.  Only one person you could see didn’t believe you, that was Senator Palpatine.  You could see his eyes from the back of the senate chamber watching you with a predatory look. 

In time Obi-wan asks you if it would be alright for him to take an apprentice, specifically Anakin Skywalker.  It is the hardest thing you ever had to do and it is an acting job worth of an academy award.  You said yes.  Take Anakin Skywalker as an apprentice.

You and he are apart much, with his becoming a general, so many of your missions were alone.

One thing you did notice in peculiar was the fact that while he aged normally, you barely aged.  Yoda explained it to you one day.  Magical usage of the force tends to preserve its mages.  So while he grew older, you remain fairly young.

Finally came Anakin’s turning.  Obi-wan Kenobi was reduced by this event in a way only the very great can be, in both pride and self-esteem.  He came back from the fight where he learned about Darth Vader and who he really is and broke down crying.  His attitude grew steadily further away galactic map was slowly bled red as it was taken over by the empire.  Soon you are part of a small band of hold outs on an outpost near Dantooine.

Every death to the Jedi Obi-wan felt, every planet lost to the aspirations of the emperor he took personally.  Everything he loved and fought for was dying.  A part of you wondered why he didn’t come to you and demand to know why you didn’t warn him to stop it.

Now you sit in a board room as Obi-wan is out with the last of his men trying to divert the emperor for just a little more time while the outpost is abandoned.  Amidala looks frail and tragic as she holds her infant children in her arms.

“We must do SOMETHING.” A rebel leader says urgently. “We are running out of time.  The emperor will be here in a matter of days and he will be hot on our trail.”

“We must keep running your majesty,” Eirtre says urgently

“Yes.” Bail says, “There is no other way.”

“But my children.” Amidala mutters, “How can I raise them in an environment where they never see peace or safety?”

You sigh deeply, you have known this time would eventually come, dreamed of it frequently, and dreaded it daily. “You can’t.”

At that all eyes turn to you.  Most everyone at the table now knew what you are and think you are supremely wise.  In reality you have just learned the art of shutting up and looking wise.

“You have a plan?” Amidala asks. 

You look at everyone around the table, “Emperor Palpatine wants to crush anyone with the potential to oppose him.  That includes the children.  They must be hidden separately.  One should stay with Amidala, the other far away.  Both hidden in the one place no one would look.”

“Where?” Amidala says

You lean back and close your eyes against the pain, “Amidala, you shall go with Prince Organa and pose as a princess.   Hope this isn’t too much of a stretch.”

Amidala smiles slightly, “I suppose I could manage that.  Hiding in plain sight.  It’s brilliant.  And the other will go to Tatooine with Obi-wan and Owen Lars as planned.”

“That is…” Panaka says archly, “If we can get off this rock someone has affectionately dubbed a planet.”

“You need a distraction.” You say, feeling surprisingly calm.  You know your destiny and will follow it out unflinchingly to death, something the ancients called fey. “Something to make SURE they come here instead of just following your space tracks.  Something they want even more then to follow you.”

“That’s nice, but how are we going to make sure they want to come?  They’ll know it’s a trap or a feint.  What could Vader and Palpatine possibly want more then to wipe us out.”

You stand up and look down at everyone from your height and say the one word that will completely piss off Obi-wan.

“Me.”

********************8

Obi-wan Kenobi wiped his forehead with a small towel as he helped haul the last of the supplies onto the vessel. “We are ready to go captain.”

“Yes General.” The woman said as she finished signing off on everything. “May I say, it was a great pleasure and privilege serving with you.”

He smiled and nodded, “You are welcome.  I only hope the council has planned an good escape for you.”

The woman nodded, “Yes, they said that everyone should evacuate this place within forty eight hours.”

Obi-wan nodded, “I knew Amidala would come up with a good plan.”

The captain shook her head, “Rumor has it, it wasn’t her plan, but that Mage’s.”

Obi-wan smiled in pride.  Time and Time again, his love’s knowledge of the future, far more accurate then the Sith Lord’s had proven their salvation. “Well, if she says it’s safe, then it is so.  Though I have to wonder, with the Sith so close on our trails, what will prevent them from picking our trail up again?” 

The Captain shook her head, “I don’t know.  My superior mumbled something about how we are going to gave them a reason to come all the way on planet in full force.  The Mage muttered something about how we don’t need to be holding four aces if they think we are holding four aces and traps only being as good as the bait used.”

Obi-wan arched his eyebrows, “You don’t seriously mean that we are actually going to do that insanity with transferring all power to the Hologenerators?”

The Captain nodded, “Yes, that Mage said she had figured out a way to fool the Sith into thinking it was populated but didn’t mention how.  Well, I have to go now General.  May the force be with us, cause we are gonna need it.”

Obi-wan dismissed the woman while turning the problem over in his mind.  The place would have to be quite heavy in the force to make it appear to a force sensitive this place was populated as greatly as one would like it to appear to be.  There was no equipment that could actually simulate force heaviness of that magnitude.  There was no way that plants of animals could be used to replace it, intelligent life has a different force signature.

Suddenly it struck Obi-wan what the answer was.

Everyone else would leave, she would stay behind.  From orbit, a force sensitive would only see heaviness associated with a dense population.  She lit up like a sun going nova, from space she alone would appear to be the base.

He felt his blood turn to icewater in his veins. 

She was giving herself up.

Again.

She had done that once and it almost killed her.  He wasn’t going to let her do it again.

 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

You are packing up your things to be given away.  You intend to face Sidious and Vader with only what you are wearing.  Trying to keep possessions would be pointless now.  You are in the middle of putting down a small article of clothing when the door opens and slams shut.

“I see you got back.” You reply mildly.  You can feel Obi-wan standing behind you positively seething.

“What in the name of Sith HELL are you thinking!” he bellows.

You don’t bother to turn around, but you are scared.  You figure if you survive this, Sidious should be a piece of cake. 

“I am trying to give life a fighting chance.” You reply very calmly as you turn to look at him.  He is wearing his Jedi robes, looking a little askew from a run. 

He closes his eyes and fights for control, “I forbid it.”

“You can’t exactly do much about it.  Face it Obi-wan, it’s the only way.”

His eyes snap open, “No!  There has to be another way.”

“You are right, there are, but none of them have outcomes that even give a passing nod to what we need.” You stare at him.

“I’ll stay, I am to…”

“No you won’t.” you growl, “YOUR job is to take Luke Skywalker to Tatooine and protect him as he grows.  Mine is to face Sidious.  I have foreseen it!”

“My duty is to protect you.” He shoots at you

“Your PRIMARY duty is to protect the people of the republic as a whole.” You snarl.  “That child is our hope for a free republic.  I am not.  I am simply a soldier, just like you.  If setting myself on fire would give you a chance to truly escape then I would cheerfully ask, where are the matches?”

He stares at you, tears glimmering in his eyes.  “No.  How can you do this? If he captures you, we will end.”

“No,” you smile sadly, “I won’t fall into his hands.  I promise.”  You hold up one small pill. 

One tear slips from the lash and falls to his cheek, “How can you be so calm about this?”

“Cause if I let myself really think about it, I won’t be able to do it.” You say shakily. “Oh god, don’t let me think about what I am really planning.”

He immediately strides forward and wraps his arms around you.  “Please don’t ask me to accept this.  I have lost the republic, I have lost Anakin, I have lost all the Jedi.  Please don’t ask me to lose you too.”

“You can’t lose me, I’m your punishment, remember?  I love you.” You sniffle and look up at him, “You know that don’t you?”

He gives you a rather watery smile, “Yes.  I know.”

You simply hold him close, arms wrapped around his waist and head resting on his shoulder.  “Please tell me I can do this, not to be scared, and everything will be all right.”

“On one condition.” He whispers.

“What?”

“You do everything you can to stay alive, evade capture, and come to me on Tatooine.” He whispered.

“Obi-wan….”

“Promise me.” He whispers hoarsely, “Promise me you will do this or I won’t let you.  I’ll knock you out until we have arrived in Tatooine!”

Both of you knew it was a hallow threat.  You smile softly, over the years, you have developed the ability to deflect his whammy to send you to sleep.  He would never raise a hand to you to physically knock you out.

You smile and remember way back, “Obi-wan.  I vow here and now that you will see me again on the sands of Tatooine.”

He sighs, “Thank you.”

“It might not be right away.  I have to hide and evade the Empire.  I will have to wait.”

“But you WILL come to me.” He says fiercely holding you tighter.

“Yes.” You say simply, “I promise.”

He smiles through the tears in his eyes, “I am holding you to that.  If you don’t, I’ll come back from the dead and torment you.”

You didn’t have time for anything else.  Both of you knew you hadn’t much time.  His lips are on yours, trying to draw your soul out and giving you his in exchange.  His hands ghost along your body and draw you to his bed for the last time.

That night, while the rest of the base was preparing for escape, you spent in a haze of physical and emotional loving.  You explore every inch of him, inside and out, memorizing everything about him.  The strong shoulders you had leaned on.  The hard muscles indicating iron clad spirit, the soft skin showing how gentle he can be.  The aquamarine opalescent eyes that were windows into his thoughts. All this, you drink up for the journey to come.  At worst it would be death, at best it would be years of waiting.

In return he repeatedly takes you apart until you are trembling in his arms, soul bared for his inspection.  Then he puts you back together reverently, exploring your body and soul just as you were memorizing his. 

At the end of the night, he gathers you to him and presses his lips to your temple. “You are mine.” He whispers, “Never forget that.”

You would answer him, but you are exhausted and can only look at him in the dim light.  He kisses you tenderly, “sleep” he whispers against your lips.  Advice which you can’t help but follow.

**********************8

Darth Vader looked out of the view port at the rebel camp.  This was far too easy.  He could sense them down there, their fear was palatable.  As his ships came around into their view he sensed their panic spike. He savored the sensation.  Let them fear.  Fear was now his ally.

“Lord Vader, shall we commence the attack?”  asked an eager Admiral, ready to prove his skills and wipe out the last of the rebel nuisance.

“You may proceed.” He said graciously.  The Admiral gave the order.  The war ships released their battle ships down to the planet.  Some of their fighting ships came up to engage but they were quickly out numbered and out gunned.

The ground troops landed.  Vader watched from the monitors as the ground troops engaged.  These rebels must be in poor shape indeed, to engage using mostly battle droids.  They too were quickly neutralized and the ground troops swarmed the base.

“Sir,” he heard a ground captain say to the Admiral, “base has been captured.”

“Excellent.” The admiral said.

“But it appears to be abandoned, sir.” The captain said with a quavering voice.

“WHAT?!” Vader bellowed in shock.  Abandoned, but he could sense the high concentration of intelligent beings on the force there.

Then suddenly, like someone switched off a light, the sense of people being there, went away.

 

~*~*~*~*~

 

After the base was searched with a fine tooth comb and stripped of anything useful to the empire, the conquers left, finding themselves conquerors of the house but the birds have flown. 

Three days after they left, a small ship arrived on the base.  A gungan, tired and old, steps out of the ramp.  His voice keens a mourning sound.  He’s been sent here to pick up any materials he can find to bring to Tatooine for a house for Jedi Obi-wan. 

He searches and manages to find a few parts and pieces that can be fitted for water condensers.  He knew about water equipment from working as a mechanic for Boss Nass.  He checks his list that he received for that Lady that was with Obi-wan a lot. They called her mage at times.  All the parts and pieces were exactly where she said they would be.  Some of the bits didn’t seem to make sense, but he followed her instructions.

When he went to look for the last item on the list, he wasn’t surprised to find it, nor was he shaken by the item he was to look for.  He went to the carbonite chamber and saw there were many slabs of materials frozen in the stoney material.  He was to find the one in the freezing chamber.  He found the chamber and opened it, and saw the block was exactly where it was and exactly as it was described.

So he activated it’s repulsors and added it to the items on his ship.  Now, he was done.  He could go and construct Obi-wan’s house on Tatooine.  Though why that Jedi wanted to live in that hot place he had no idea.

Nor could he fathom why the lady thought it was necessary to bury a carbonite block under Obi-wan’s floor.

 

~*~*~*~*~

 

-Tia