We were ushered into someone's quarters almost instantly upon arriving, which turned out to be Yoda's chamber as the little Jedi Master came stumping into our presence, frowning at the intrusion. "Master Qui-Gon," he croaked scoldingly, "more care must you have in summoning me. And for the welfare of your charge, I think, hmm?" He looked up at me and narrowed his green eyes. "Heard I that she was ill. What is this, now?"

"Master Windu proposed that we try infusing her blood with midi-chlorians taken from a compatible donor," the Master explained patiently. "Mine was the closest match, so we did it - and it worked. Not only did she recover completely, she's become part of the Force."

"Oh?" Yoda looked at me again, more keenly, but I felt no Force movement that would suggest he was testing the truth of Qui-Gon's words. He then flicked his piercing gaze back to Qui-Gon. "Think I that you ought to know before you speak of such things, Qui-Gon."

Qui-Gon's exuberant gaze faded. I could feel the confusion in him, and it made me smirk to myself - not at his emotional state, but that I could sense it. It was like having a new toy to play with. "I don't understand what you mean, Master."

"Nothing has changed," Yoda said simply. "Feel her I do not, blank she still is. Certain, are you, that this course of action healed her has?"

I could feel outrage in both Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. "Are you certain, Master Yoda, that you cannot sense her?" Obi-Wan spoke up. "With all due respect, even I can feel her presence. Faintly, but it's there."

"Can you?" The expression on Yoda's wrinkled face turned from annoyed to confused. "Hmm."

"I had a feeling something might be strange about it," Qui-Gon mused, softening his expression. He had been upset with Yoda's blunt dismissal of his intelligence, but was now calm and composed as he thought. "We came so I could test its limits, after Obi-Wan mentioned to me that he could sense her at last. It...well, we're back where we started. To you, she is still blank, a non-presence. To myself and Obi-Wan, she is normal."

Yoda did not appear stumped by such an idea. "Your midi-chlorians she has, you say?" The Jedi Master nodded. "Then, possible it is, that they have not fully become part of her. Came from you they did, so with you they still have a bond. You, and your Padawan, who shares a bond with you."

I looked at the two Jedi with amazement. Bonded with them? Was he serious? "It's possible," Qui-Gon acknowledged. "Midi-chlorians aren't natural to her, it could be that they aren't taking a permanent hold. Hopefully, that doesn't mean the effect is temporary. The midi-chlorians should sustain her health indefinitely."

"That we will not know, but with time." Yoda studied all three of us for a moment, before turning and ambling back toward the doors to the innermost part of his quarters. "Not much to be done now. Go your way. Tell the Council of this development I will, but their opinions you may not know until tomorrow. May the Force be with you...all," he added, glancing over his bowed shoulder toward me specifically. The tone of his blessing did not reassure me.

Satisfied, Qui-Gon turned on his heel and led the way out, and we returned to the Jedi's quarters without further incident. It was late, I was hungry, and Master Qui-Gon was exhausted. He went to bed, while I stayed up and shared a meal with Obi-Wan, who couldn't resist playing the tenuous web of the Force around us to try and figure me out. Anyone else would not have been able to feel his questioning, but I could just get glimpses of it, like a cold draft whose source you don't know but can feel on your skin. Finally, I propped my elbows on the table and fixed him with an annoyed grin. "Would you quit it?"

"What?" he wondered innocently.

"You're trying to read my thoughts," I accused. "What are you looking for?"

Obi-Wan averted his eyes sheepishly, smiling. "I was just curious what I would find. I wanted to know if finding yourself here was frightening to you in any way."

I recalled what he had said over me, to Qui-Gon, the night before, but couldn't comment because he had thought I was asleep at the time. "I'm not afraid of this place at all," I told him. "It's a delight to find myself here. If anything, I hope I never go back."

His expression became more serious. "You don't want to go back? Is your world so bad? I don't get that impression."

"Oh, no...my world isn't bad, really. I've got a pretty good life, by most standards. But...I lacked purpose. Despite having a lot of good friends, and a God who loves me, there were times I felt I could disappear and not be missed in the grand scheme of things." That brought up uncomfortable reminders, which I tried to push aside. "I wonder if anybody misses me now."

"I'm sure they do," Obi-Wan said reassuringly. "Your parents."

"Oh, yeah. They do. My mom is probably hysterical." I shook my head. "But she wouldn't believe me even if she had proof where I was. I'm a pretty imaginative person, but trying to explain that I was living in 'Star Wars World' would make her want to have me committed."

"I want to know more about that," the young Padawan said suddenly, folding his arms and resting them on the table in front of him. "What do you mean, to your world we're nothing but fiction? A legend? How would they know?"

"Well..." I tried to form an explanation in my mind, before speaking it aloud, but any attempt sounded silly to me. At last, I just told him what I figured he could understand. "Your story has been told to us as a completely made-up story, a saga of the whole galaxy and the Jedi and what happens to them. Books and movies. A lot of people are fans of the story, but it's just that - a story. In our thinking, what happens here is supposed to have happened long ago and in a galaxy far away from us. Only in our imaginations have we dared to dream that it could be real and we could go to that galaxy and interact with our favorite characters. It's an escape, sort of. A way of escaping our mundane daily lives and living among heroes and warriors. Except now, I've really escaped."

Obi-Wan reflected silently upon that, his blue eyes clouding. "I get the feeling you're hiding something from me," he murmured, turning those blue eyes on me. "Jedi aren't mind readers, like Master Qui-Gon said, we only sense your emotions and impressions. But there's something about this story you're not telling me."

I looked down at my empty plate to avoid his intense gaze. "Most of the story I know...well, all of it, I guess...takes place in your future," I said at last, slowly and heavily. "It hasn't happened yet."

"The future is always in motion," the Jedi countered, something he had been taught well.

"It is, but...that was before I came here. Before me, you probably assumed - as I did - that time is linear, it can't be bent or traveled through. Now, though, both of us are going to have to rethink that."

"Maybe. Maybe not." He stared at me some more, trying to sense my impression of the future. It was very hard for me not to think of him battling on Naboo, taking on a disputed Padawan, losing his Master. If my thoughts had dwelled on those nonexistent events, he would have been able to sense the despair and grief, and would have naturally wondered whether his future held nothing but disaster. As it was, he didn't seem pleased. "I won't ask you, then," he wisely decided. "If there were any reason for me to know my future, I would let the Force tell me. The Force guides me."

"Make sure that it always does," I advised, picking up my glass as if to conclude the conversation. "What do Jedi do for fun?"

"Fun?" Obi-Wan grinned. "Jedi have no time for fun. Not like you're used to."

"Hey, I have about as much of a social life as a...as a moisture farmer on Tatooine," I joked. "But everyone has to have a little fun now and then. Don't tell me all you do is learn and meditate."

"Not all," he admitted. "But really, Master Qui-Gon and I are usually on some mission, there are seldom moments when we have time to ourselves, and we usually spend those in pursuit of my training. Sparring, or meditating. We don't hang around in spaceports looking for the best cantinas or anything."

"I didn't think you did," I smiled. The thought was amusing, and I giggled a little to myself. He chuckled, too. "Really, you don't do anything except work?"

"Well..." He glanced toward the closed door of his Master's room, as if confirming that he wouldn't overhear us, and then back to me with a mischievous little grin. "A good Jedi learns many skills, in case they might come in handy on a mission someday. The point is not to let a diversion become a vice."

"Tell me about it." I knew all about that, from my own faith and the abundance of addicting diversions on my world.

"I'm sure you wouldn't know how to play any of the games I'm familiar with, though," Obi-Wan continued. "It's late, anyway. I wouldn't want to disturb Master Qui-Gon."

"But I don't want to just go to bed," I complained. "I'm wide awake. I don't need any more rest."

"A walk, perhaps?" Obi-Wan inclined his head toward the door. "I'll show you around the Temple."

"Sure." It was an offer no one could refuse. We left the quarters as quietly as we could and started down the main corridor, though I walked a step behind Obi-Wan so he could guide me. I was in an accelerated state of excitement, doing my best not to run up and down the hall squealing, "I'm in Star Wars, and I met Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, and I have the Force!" Instead, I suppressed my natural reaction and followed the Padawan as he showed me around. We wandered through the lower dormitories and classrooms of the Jedi Temple, where during the day hundreds of Jedi hopefuls learned about the ways of the Force and the Code of the Jedi, though now the rooms were deserted. The many corridors were filled with a reverent hush during the day, but at night, the hush was even deeper, as if the very walls and floors were trying not to disturb the sleep of Jedi. The hallways were dimly lit with glowlamps turned low, barely casting shadows. Every window we passed let in little peeks of the dazzling Coruscant skyline, shimmering like a million Christmas trees against the blackness of night. The carpeted hallways gave way to smooth, tiled floor as we passed into the area of the fight-practice rooms, where the sweat and blood of generations of Padawans had been shed in the hopes of achieving a Master's skill. Faint light filtered into the one practice hall we walked through from windows high above, falling in small, gray patches on the patterned tilework of the floor. I glanced at Obi-Wan. "I'm sure you spent a lot of time in here."

"This one, and many like it," he agreed, nodding slowly as he walked around the hall in a slow circle. "Perhaps too much time. I always wanted to hone my weapons skills at the expense of knowledge. But, such is the desire of any young boy."

"I think you turned out just fine," I complimented him. "You shouldn't be ashamed that you're a fine swordsman - you were taught by the best."

"That I was," Obi-Wan acknowledged, smiling wistfully. "Master Qui-Gon truly is the best. When I was a boy, hoping for a Master, everyone wanted to be his Padawan. I consider myself very fortunate."

I looked at him, and took note of the glowing smile he wore. I could feel an overwhelming sense of respect, admiration, and love from him. "I'm jealous of the bond you have with him," I said, quite abruptly. I was surprised at myself for admitting this in front of him, and the look on his face showed he was just as surprised at hearing it. "I mean," I quickly clarified, "there's no relationship in my life with such strength and closeness. Maybe if I get married someday, I hope to be so close with my husband..."

Obi-Wan's eyes widened. "Our relationship is nothing like that...!"

"I didn't mean to imply that," I assured, smiling. He was clearly disturbed by the suggestion. I had better not tell him what people on my world have been inclined to imagine. "But the way you two are so in tune with one another...the closest thing I could ever hope for is a good marriage."

"You can't have a bond like the one between Master and Padawan without the Force," Obi-Wan pointed out. "Mentors and their students can have strong bonds, friendships even stronger, and families the strongest yet, but they pale when considered next to the way the Force binds me with Master Qui-Gon. He's the only father I've ever known, my best friend, and a teacher I respect greatly. Have you nothing like it where you come from?"

"Faith," I suggested. "God. But that's not tangible like the Force."

"I see." He clasped his hands behind his back and wandered away from me, vaguely in the direction of the door. "But you might be able to understand it now, if the Force allows you to see into our bond."

"I'm looking forward to learning more about it. If I can." He seemed intent on continuing the tour, so I followed him away. "What do you think they're going to do with me, now?"

"Who? The Council?" Obi-Wan waited for me to catch up, and guided me through the complex toward a section of the Jedi Temple I had not yet been to. "It's hard to say. They've never dealt with anything like this before. The fact that Master Qui-Gon and I can sense you in the Force but they can't...that's not going to help much." He turned to me, slowing his pace somewhat. "Are you afraid of being separated from us?"

It was true. I could no longer hide my feelings from him - from either of them. "Yeah," I confessed quietly. "Qui-Gon was so kind to just...take me in like he did. Both of you have been very patient with me, not once casting me aside, even though you have every right. I shouldn't be your problem, but you've made me your problem. You're the only two people in this whole galaxy I really know...and now I'm a part of you, in a way. With the midi-chlorians and all. I wouldn't know what to do if the Council won't let me stay with you two."

"I wouldn't worry," Obi-Wan said reassuringly, placing a hand on my shoulder as we halted near a transparent wall of floor-to-ceiling windowpanes looking out on an artificially-maintained garden near the center of the complex. "When Master Qui-Gon takes on a cause, he stays with it until he sees it through completely. If the Council tries to separate you from us, I have no doubt he will resist."

"As he always does," I commented.

Obi-Wan frowned curiously. "Do you know much about Master Qui-Gon?"

How to answer without letting my thoughts stray somewhere where he could pick them up and examine them? "Quite a bit, actually, though not much of his past, just his time with you. I know he tends to defy the Jedi Council, because he's so in tune with the living Force and sees things in situations they might not. It bugs them." I gave him the same curious frown. "What do you think about his rebellious streak?"

The apprentice sighed and turned away so I would not see his face. I caught a glimpse of a conflicted expression before he got far. "He would be on the Council if not for his defiance. Sometimes, I wish he wouldn't be so impulsive, but other times...a lot of other times..." He sighed again, remorsefully. "I wish I could be as centered as he is. He has no concern for himself, he just listens to the will of the Force and does it. In my thinking, he ought to take more time to consider the Code, but then again, he surprises me by actually fulfilling everything it means to be a Jedi. On the surface he seems rebellious, but I know..." He turned slightly back toward me, though his eyes drifted out the windows to the still, deserted garden. "Deep down I know that he is a wise man, a greater Jedi Master than I will ever be. His rebellion is only on the surface; when you get through to the heart of the matter, he's following the Force more closely than anyone."

I smiled longingly. "That's what makes him so great."

Obi-Wan glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes, and he fought the urge to smirk. "You do speak highly of him."

"And why not? You know he's worthy of it, though he would never admit it."

"I also know him better than you do. He is a man with flaws, like any man. I am no different."

"But a good person looks past flaws, and doesn't hold them against someone," I argued. "If you dwell on a person's flaws, they will never rise to the level they deserve in your eyes. I know you don't have that problem, with Qui-Gon," I added when he looked at me, about to argue, "but there are others who do."

"The High Council." He was reading my thoughts again, I figured. "I feel a little resentment in you. You don't like them."

"It's silly," I tried to explain. "I'm biased. They remind me of politicians, gathering and talking without ever getting anywhere, mired in rules and legalism. But I don't know them very well, so I should keep my opinion to myself. They're very wise, they didn't get to be on the Council by just being political."

Obi-Wan nodded, but made no comment about it. "Come. I want to show you the map room. There shouldn't be anyone else in there at this time of night, you'll find it fascinating." He left the window and started down the corridor, not waiting for me. I followed right away, wondering about the impression I had gotten from him. Mingled with concern that I was not giving the Jedi Council a fair shake was a note of empathy. I think somewhere inside, despite his admonishment that his Master ought to cooperate with the Council, Obi-Wan also found their tendency to dismiss Qui-Gon irritating. Such a loyal Padawan, I thought.

*****

*****

The next morning, after the three of us rose and breakfasted, Qui-Gon received a call from the Chancellor's office, asking him to come to the Senate and brief the Chancellor further on the results of his mission. At some point after we landed on Coruscant, the Master did contact Chancellor Valorum and explain what had happened, but they had gotten swept up in my problems since then, and had not been able to properly inform the Chancellor of the consequences of the mission's failure. He decided that since the Council had still not gotten back to us about me, all three of us ought to go over to the Senate. "Both of you played a part in the escape from the transport," he pointed out as he threw his robe over his broad shoulders and adjusted it. "I see no reason to exclude you from the briefing. It was Chancellor Valorum himself who gave us this assignment, he will likely be the only one there."

"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan agreed with a bob of his head. He then grinned at me. "Are you ready to meet the Republic's supreme leader?"

"Anytime," I replied, smiling at his challenge. "I promise to behave."

"I should hope so." Qui-Gon glanced over his shoulder at me with a twinkle in his blue eyes and a smirk on his lips. "Come along, then. We shouldn't keep him waiting."

A transport was docked at one of the many entrances to the Jedi Temple, prepared to shuttle us across Coruscant to the Senate offices, nestled within a forest of taller, impressive buildings some distance from the Temple. The Senate was even more impressive, a giant silver dome like a football stadium, dominating whole city blocks. The Chancellor's private office was not in the Senate dome itself, but high in a tower next to it. Two cloaked and hooded Jedi received the utmost in respect and honor as they walked the floors toward their destination, though I probably aroused a bit of suspicion even though I was in their company. Fortunately, at some point the day before, someone had finally located something for me to wear besides my jeans and t-shirt, which really could have stood to be washed after a couple days of space travel and suffering. The long-sleeved tunic and soft, warm trousers were simple, dark blue trimmed with gold, and a little large, but they were just fine. I didn't look impressive, for sure, but I never cared about that anyway. Coruscant was cooler in climate than I expected, so I valued the tunic's long sleeves. We were escorted into the Chancellor's office right away, and left with only a Republic guard in blue robes to wait to be summoned. Qui-Gon lowered his hood and clasped his hands in the sleeves of his robe. "So," he said to me, "what do you make of all this?"

"This is cool," I said, unable to keep from smiling. "How do I get to be so special? Not everybody gets to meet the Chancellor."

There was no more time to talk, for we were shown into the inner room where the Chancellor waited. He was a tall, thin man, with close-cropped silvery hair clinging tenaciously to his narrow head. He was dressed efficiently, and carried himself like a man of authority and distinction. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan bowed immediately in his presence, and I effected a polite bob of my head as well. "Master Qui-Gon," Chancellor Valorum greeted him, using the title out of respect. "So good of you to come right away."

"I apologize for not getting here sooner," Qui-Gon said cordially. "We got involved in some important business with the Council."

Valorum's icy eyes shifted to me. "Who is this?"

"A friend of ours, a visitor. She was left on board the transport when it was attacked, I insist she be here to share her story." The Master held his hand out toward me. "Chancellor, this is Stacey. Stacey, Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum."

I bowed my head again and said, "Well met."

Valorum smiled very slightly, as if pleased with my display of respect. "Very well, Qui-Gon. If you insist, I will allow her to stay. But please, tell me what happened to this Rodian envoy. I find it hard to believe they attacked you without provocation, the Rodians are notoriously cautious when it comes to starting interstellar incidents against the Republic."

The Chancellor moved behind his battleship of a desk and sat down, indicating that we should as well. The door was closed already, confining us in assumed privacy. "I have come to doubt that the Rodians were even involved in this attack, unless perhaps by accident," Qui-Gon began to explain. He detailed the attack and our escape, as precisely as I had heard him recount it to the Council. He touched briefly on my being there, but explained it as having something to do with the Force, not envoys, and that seemed enough to satisfy Valorum. "I find it odd that no one came to meet us, suggesting that the real aggressors did not want us to know who they are. I have not yet determined whether the ship itself or Obi-Wan and I were the target of the attack. If it was the ship, they have succeeded, but why take an unarmed Republic cruiser? If it was us, they failed, and I wonder to what lengths they may go next time to try and take us."

"Have you heard anything from the ship? Has anyone spotted it?" Obi-Wan wondered.

Valorum shook his head. "Nothing. I assume the entire crew is dead, though if any of them survived, they are likely being held somewhere."

"From what I saw, they all perished," Qui-Gon said grimly.

The chancellor folded his hands before him, swinging his chair so he could gaze absently at the wall while he thought. "The Rodian delegates to the Senate, who made the request for a Jedi presence, claim they know nothing of why their ship would attack the transport, or try to kill the very Jedi they requested. I am inclined to believe them, though I always have a shred of doubt when around Rodians."

"Did they specifically request my assistance, or did they simply ask for Jedi?" Qui-Gon queried.

"Just Jedi. They assumed I would send a pair, though. I thought, considering the circumstances, you and your apprentice would do best."

"They never gave us the reason they requested our aid," the Master continued.

"And they went through you, not through the Senate or Council like most do," Obi-Wan added astutely.

"And they continue to be perplexed by the turn of events," Valorum said, swinging his chair back around to face us. "I told them not to expect your help now, at least not right away, while we get to the bottom of this. When I'm asked to authorize a Jedi presence among any delegation, I don't want to have to worry whether they will come out of it alive. The Rodians have temporarily withdrawn their request." He leaned forward, setting his hands on his desk. I saw him as a powerful and intelligent man, without any corrupt intents in him, just by the way he looked at Qui-Gon and spoke. "Have you been detained for any other mission?"

"None," Qui-Gon confirmed. "We were merely waiting on the outcome of the Council's decisions for our friend, here."

"Then, as soon as you can, take a ship and join the search for our transport. I want to know who attacked you, and why, and the answers will not be found on Coruscant. If you can locate the transport, so much the better, but I would settle for bringing your attackers to justice. The families of the transport's crew may not like to hear that," he admitted with some chagrin, "but at this point it can't be helped."

"Yes, Chancellor," Qui-Gon said, nodding his head. "We should be able to leave within a day."

"The Senate will provide everything you need. No one has dared come out and say this could be a waste of time, and if they did, the Rodians would argue them. They suspect their ship may have been stolen and used by another force, or their captain bribed, or something. They haven't seen their ship, either, since you saw it disappear into hyperspace."

"That's important information. Thank you." The Jedi Master rose and bowed again, signaling that Obi-Wan and I should do likewise, and we departed together. Valorum evidently needed nothing more than Qui-Gon's assurance that he would comply, he gave no farewells or fancy words. We passed quickly through offices and out to the transport, which was ready to take us back to the Temple, and once we were seated on the ship Qui-Gon finally spoke about what had transpired. "I may want to speak with the Rodian senators who made this request of the Chancellor," he said, mostly to Obi-Wan, "but I feel we have enough to find our attackers."

"Who do you suspect?" the Padawan questioned.

"No one, not yet. But we will find out. I have confidence the Force will lead us where we need to go."

Obi-Wan nodded his agreement, and then glanced at me. I had been silent a long time, but they no longer needed my words to know I was with them all the way. "You intend to take her with us."

"I can't leave her."

"The Temple is a much safer place than..."

"Safety is not an issue," Qui-Gon interrupted his apprentice. "She has a unique bond with us. No one else will be able to help her if something happens. We're the only ones who can, and myself much more than you. I want her with me at all times."

Obi-Wan made a face, both seeing his Master's point and feeling compelled to disagree. "The Council won't let you."

Qui-Gon raised one eyebrow. "I would like to see the Council try to stop me."

"So would I," I broke in, coming to Qui-Gon's defense. Obi-Wan was merely protesting out of an ingrained sense of needing to play devil's advocate, anyway. "I'm not a Jedi. The Council has no authority over me. I will go wherever I want, and I want to go with you." I softened my tone as I added, specifically to Obi-Wan, "I don't want to be left alone. You know that."

The Padawan nodded reluctantly. "I know. But it may be dangerous."

"Good. I could use a little excitement."

Qui-Gon smiled unabashedly at my reaction to the suggestion. "I seriously doubt anyone in the Council would dare to stop her. She's right, they have no place to demand anything of her. Neither do I. But I leave it in your hands," he said to me. "Obi-Wan is right, we're likely to encounter some dangerous situations. I can't guarantee you won't be injured, or captured, or killed. You're free to stay at the Temple if you think it would be safer."

"I would feel much safer with you around," I decided. "I don't mind, as long as you're willing to have me tagging along. I don't want to be any more of a burden than I already have been."

The Master clapped a heavy hand to my shoulder. "We will be happy to have you along," he said brightly. "I will see to it the arrangements are made. We will leave as soon as a ship is available."

On to part 5

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