"Master Qui-Gon wanted you to look at the one at the end of the hall where they broke in," I reminded him. "The latch might be broken."

"Ah, right. Boy, that must have been some excitement," the Pfand chuckled. "I have to say, I don't get cases like this. Most of my work is from the occasional accident. Children throwing rocks, you know. Lots of storm damage from trees. And then there was the bird that flew into the big pane on the top level of the capitol - you wouldn't think transparisteel could crack from just that."

I nodded and smiled, but didn't take much interest in his stories of whose windows he repaired. I let him prattle on while I looked around, satisfied that the house would be mostly back to normal fairly quickly. If Obi-Wan could do nothing about CQ, he and his Master would have to continue to keep watch until the mission's end, but at least all the locks would be secure and no gaping holes would be left. My biggest remaining question - and fear - was that the theft was not at all connected to the threats made behind our backs. Was Xanatos right, or was this the only thing we had to be afraid of?

Despite having been up most of the night, watching and covering up the broken windows, Qui-Gon had left very early in the morning on a hunt for the thieves. As Obi-Wan told me when I got up, he wanted to hit the streets looking for tracks or a trail before most of Takra was awake and normal passersby obliterated any footprints left by our attackers. The Master didn't come back until almost noon, looking haggard and disgruntled. He informed Obi-Wan that he had tracked the thieves to some warehouses near the spaceport, but then lost the trail inside and had nothing else to go on. They were likely hired by someone else to do the dirty work, and had now disappeared with no way of knowing who had sent them. Upon delivering his report, Qui-Gon went directly upstairs to take a nap. His Padawan sighed tiredly and sat back down with the security droid and a case of tools. I sat down with him. "What's the verdict?"

"I've done everything I know how," Obi-Wan lamented, shaking his head. "They didn't just switch him off, they disabled him. Everything is put back where it belongs, but I still can't get any power. A more competent droid repair specialist will have to look at him."

"Poor CQ," I said sadly. "He was only doing his job."

"It's a droid, not a sentient being," Obi-Wan reminded me with a little chuckle. "It will be repaired, or junked if repair isn't possible, and we'll commission a new one."

"Yeah, but..." I prodded at one dark panel. "A lot of droids have a personality, makes you think they're part of the team. I kinda miss him already."

The apprentice laughed, but decided not to argue with me any further. At that moment the signal for an incoming transmission sounded throughout the house, so he got up and went to answer it. I patted CQ's lifeless exoskeleton before wandering off to keep myself busy elsewhere. As I stepped into the doorway of the sitting room, Obi-Wan raced past me down the hall to the stairs. I stared after him, perplexed, before continuing into the hallway. A minute later he returned, now with a very grumpy-looking Master in tow. They disappeared into the office, but I dared not follow. A spark of energy in the air told me something was afoot, but I didn't want to know about it - not at the risk of being sent to the roof again.

They weren't in the office long. Qui-Gon stormed out and headed back up the hallway to the stairs. Obi-Wan just stepped into the hall to wait, his gaze falling on me. "You're going to have to come with us," he said quietly. "Without a security droid, this is not a good time to leave you alone."

"What is it?" I asked nervously. "Who was that?"

"It was a short recording," the Padawan replied darkly, "rerouted through several channels so that we could not trace the source. It contained the information Xanatos promised on who traced his transmissions in Skoda."

"Come," Qui-Gon interrupted, having thrown on his robe and retrieved his lightsaber from his room. "Stacey, don't get separated from us."

"Where are we going?" I pestered as we rushed out of the house and up the walkway to the street. No one answered me.

Qui-Gon led the way through the streets of Takra, shouldering through throngs of passersby, to the capitol complex I had seen once on my first day on Daramin. Neither security nor administration stopped us or even spoke to us as we entered one building and traversed the gray halls looking for...well, I had no idea what we were looking for. I could only follow, stretching my stride to the fullest in order to keep up with Qui-Gon's urgent pace, swallowing my questions until a more appropriate time. The Master found his way to a certain office without help, and only informed the young Pfand at the desk outside that he was going in, brokering no protests. Another Pfand sat inside, hard at work, though he looked up in perplexity when we entered. "Master Jinn," he started to say.

"This shouldn't take long, Trora," Qui-Gon said curtly, "my apologies for interrupting anything important."

"Just going over the arrangements for the senator's visit," Trora shrugged, getting to his feet and coming around his desk. "It's two weeks away, I want to be sure everything is in place."

"The senator may cancel his trip when he hears our report," the Master corrected.

Trora's silvery eyes widened, and his brow furrowed. "What? What are you talking about?"

"We've encountered some trouble in the course of this mission."

"Though someone broke into our quarters and stole our reports last night," Obi-Wan added.

Trora started. "How terrible! Was anyone hurt?"

Qui-Gon shook his head. "Fortunately for us, all the information is safe."

Only because of my code and our copies, I thought to myself.

"I don't understand," the Pfand said. "Does that mean you caught the thieves? Already?"

The Master let a second of silence indicate that he was not going to answer that question. "I didn't know you came here from Skoda."

Trora eyed him suspiciously. "Yes, I was raised there."

"And you still own property there."

"Yes, that's right..."

"Are you aware, then, that someone in your employ at the ionite mine you own had the Jedi quarters in Skoda under surveillance?"

My eyes must have been as wide as Trora's, hearing that. He stammered for a few seconds before spluttering, "What are you saying?"

Qui-Gon stared him down, in no mood to beat around any bushes with politicians. "Either you need to have more care in who you hire to run your landholdings, or everything we uncovered while in Skoda can be pinned on you alone."

"Now hold on!" Trora barked. "I don't know what you think you uncovered, but it has nothing to do with me. I'm the liaison to the Senate, my life is consumed with the push to get Daramin representation and...and you think I would jeopardize that by getting involved in something like...like..."

"Like discrediting the Jedi?" Obi-Wan suggested.

"I don't know anything about that," Trora insisted. "I want this world to succeed, and I want this senator to represent us. Nothing can stand in our way!"

"Yet you do know something," Qui-Gon placidly observed, folding his arms sternly. "If I were you, I would be more forthcoming with it, or risk your life's work keeping it from us. We have evidence implicating the mining guild already," he added. "We can take you down with them."

"No," Trora said vehemently, waving his hands. "I will tell you, but you must let me continue my work. We're so close!"

"I have had a long night and very little sleep, so I am not in the mood to debate with you. I will decide what to do with you after I hear what you have to say," Qui-Gon growled subtly.

Trora looked furtively around the room for a moment, as if hunting for surveillance, before stepping as close as he dared to the two straight-backed Jedi. "I still have many connections in Skoda, even though I left ten years ago," he admitted in a hushed voice. "One of my friends came to me, and asked me if they could use the equipment at my ionite mine to keep tabs on the Jedi teams. He said he was concerned that they were going to ruin the industry in Skoda, and wanted to collect information to protect the guild against any future conflicts. I let him, but I promise you I had no idea what they were doing with that information. If you've already turned over every stone in the guild, you already have every person I know in Skoda implicated in something."

"Is that the entire truth?" Qui-Gon pressed.

The thick-set Pfand fidgeted for a moment, wringing his hands, before stealing a glance up at the Master's stony face. "They said they were going to make sure the Jedi didn't stand in the way of Senate representation. The last team that came here made things very hard for me, so I told them they could do whatever they wanted with my communicators in order to ensure that you didn't stand in my way when I made the request for the senator's visit."

Qui-Gon held him in his gaze for a long time, silent and cold, but in the end, relented with a nod. "Thank you, Trora. I regret that you have had difficulties cooperating with the Jedi, even though we are all seeking the same end. We have removed the surveillance from the house in Skoda and as soon as our mission is complete, will be demanding several arrests and citations among the mining guild. If you agree to turn over all evidence, you may escape the net."

"Yes, Master Jedi. Of course," Trora said anxiously. "Anything to protect Daramin and the representation effort."

"However, I will be informing the sectorial senator of everything that has happened here. I will let him make his own decisions with all the information, from us as well as from you, as to whether Daramin deserves a voice in the Senate yet." Master Qui-Gon narrowed his eyes. "Thank you for your help."

He turned to leave, and I stepped just out of his way to let him lead. Trora called out after us, "I will alert you if any more information comes to me from Skoda, Master Jedi."

"See that you do that," Qui-Gon snapped over his shoulder.

We were well away from the capitol and deep in the anonymous streets when at last Obi-Wan broke the heavy silence hovering over us. "Finally. A break."

"One we can trust," Qui-Gon added in relief. "His desperation to see the senatorial committee through will ensure that he will cooperate with us, or risk failure."

"This is insane," I muttered. "These people have no idea what they want. They want to prove to the Senate that they've come so far and don't need the Jedi anymore, but they're totally going about it the wrong way. Making you guys look like idiots? It's all going to blow up in their faces."

"It already has," the Master said.

Upon returning to the house, he put in a call to the offices of the Executor to try to set up a meeting, but was put off. Grumbling an order to Obi-Wan, he finally went up and took that nap he so desperately needed. His apprentice waited around for the message to be returned, which didn't happen until very late in the day, when the Executor's assistant politely attempted to schedule an appointment several days from now. Obi-Wan would not be deterred, and stoically wrestled the assistant down to tomorrow afternoon. I watched the verbal sparring with mingled interest and frustration, wishing I could make their job easier somehow, and snorted as soon as the transmission ended. "Something tells me the Executor doesn't want to see you guys."

"If he were smart, he would leap at the chance to have audience with us and clear everything up, so that we stop making noise about our suspicions," Obi-Wan said with a shake of his head. "He can't avoid us forever. Master Qui-Gon will not make an accusation without confronting him first, in case he has evidence to the contrary of what we already know."

"Mmm. Bummer." I tilted my head and peered at him. "Are you ready to confront him?"

"That is Master Qui-Gon's decision." He turned in his chair and dropped his hands into his lap. "He must be ready, or he would not have insisted that I make the appointment for tomorrow."

I nodded and then held out a hand toward him. "Meanwhile, both of you ought to relax so you don't snap his head off when you see him. I thought for sure Qui-Gon was going to kick Trora's ass! You know," I pouted, "I came here to be a distraction, and I haven't been doing my job very well lately."

Smirking, Obi-Wan took the offered hand and let me pull him to his feet. "Perhaps you should try harder."

"Perhaps you should let me." I smirked right back and took up both his hands in mine, tugging him closer to me. For a moment we stood gazing at each other, wordlessly exchanging soft smiles, and I know my mind at least was alive with a million curious thoughts. I found myself laughing under my breath. "Can you believe how far we've come?"

Obi-Wan's ocean-colored eyes twinkled in question. "What do you mean?"

"I've been reading over some of my old journal passages while I was waiting for stuff to do this week," I explained. "It's hard to believe as I'm standing here right now, just a couple months ago I was still afraid to do this..." I squeezed his hands and lifted them up to indicate the warm, intimate way I held them to me. "...and just a month before that, I was terrified of you finding out that I was attracted to you. Look at where we are now."

He thought about it, an appreciative smile dawning gradually on his lips. "I suppose you're right. I have been consumed with a lot of thoughts lately but I never considered that."

"It's like Master always says. 'Your focus determines your reality.' Step back a second, and look what you've got."

Our eyes remained locked on each other for a time, as neither of us seemed willing to break the spell, until a nervous twinge rippled through the Force and Obi-Wan's cheeks flushed red. Dropping his gaze, he chuckled slightly. "I ought to be careful, and not take it for granted," he acknowledged in a soft purr, lifting my left hand and tenderly kissing it, giving me a sultry look from beneath long eyelashes as he pulled away.

I sighed happily and stood there a moment longer, reveling in the feelings swirling through me, until I realized by his departure that that was all I was going to get. Closing my eyes and shaking my head, I abandoned the office and went to find out what would happen next.

*****

A day later, Qui-Gon came to me in a huff as I stood on the balcony overlooking the square, enjoying the sunshine and watching the clouds. I glanced up to his face, but he spoke before I could ask what he wanted. "I need you to pack your things," he said seriously, "and get ready to leave. Everything."

"We're going?" I queried, leaning back on the balcony railing.

"Not right away, but I want you to be ready to leave at a moment's notice." He looked out across the green square, his eyes distant and hard. "Things here are uncertain. We can't leave Daramin until the next team arrives, but we may have to take shelter in another region of the planet if anything happens."

I stared after him as he gave me a nod and went back inside. I had begun to notice that when Qui-Gon was in the home stretch of a mission, under stress, or in the middle of something dreadfully important, he became focused intently on that alone and had no time for distractions. He hadn't given me so much as a pat on the shoulder in the past couple of days, but I accepted that willingly - I had no right to complain when he had a duty to carry out. Letting him be, I went to my room and tossed my bag on the bed. Everything went into it, folded into tight bundles, except for my painting which wouldn't fit. I had an odd twinge of worry and checked behind it; the report was still there, safe. Thinking about it for a moment, I pulled out the papers and rolled them into a little tube which I could fit between the warm sweaters at the bottom of the bag. All that remained was the extra clothing the Jedi had brought or obtained for themselves, so I hopped down the stairs to find them and ask them to either help me or give me permission to go in their rooms to get it. Before I could begin to say anything to Qui-Gon, however, the main door sensor sounded. Master and Padawan looked at each other - they weren't expecting visitors. Qui-Gon went to answer it, so I stepped aside with Obi-Wan in the sitting room. "I've got room in my bag for your stuff, and Master's," I let him know.

"Oh. Good - go ahead and get it," he replied. "Master Qui-Gon and I will be leaving shortly for the..."

A small knot of people came into the sitting room, rendering the rest of Obi-Wan's comment null and void: it was the Executor. Two furry Nego came with him, like bodyguards, but the Master still towered over them as he showed them in. "This is a surprise, Executor," he was saying as pleasantly as he could. "We were just about to go to your office."

"I thought it best to save both you and me the trouble of having you seen in the capitol again," the Executor said, almost threateningly. I was trapped in the room with them, and slunk over to a chair in the corner to wait out what looked to be an unpleasant confrontation.

Qui-Gon retreated somewhat, standing with Obi-Wan facing our visitors, their arms relaxed at their sides with lightsabers easily in view. "I can see you already have some idea what we need to talk about with you, so I will dispense with formalities and niceties. We have reason to believe that some people in high positions on Daramin and within the Homeworld Alliance are doing their best to get the Jedi to leave or be removed from their position as overseers. Comparing the evidence we have collected ourselves with that already on file from past teams has led us to this conclusion. Do you have anything to say about it?"

The Executor blinked slowly, unruffled. "From what I hear in the streets, Master Jedi, it is hard to bring such accusations without evidence. Everyone has heard by now of the break-in the other night."

Qui-Gon gave a sardonic chuckle. "Haven't your contacts told you? The files that were stolen are useless. The only one of import taken is written in a code I doubt anyone on this world or even this galaxy can crack."

"You're bluffing," one of the Nego growled.

"You only think I am," the Master returned sharply. "Trora thought I was, I could sense it. I'm sure he told you what I said to him yesterday."

I used the Force to prevent myself from openly reacting, but my mind whirled. Wait a minute, I thought he said we could trust Trora...

"You've bought his testimony with promises of letting him go," the Executor said unhappily. "Yes, he did tell me you had been to visit him, and I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear that you've scared him to death. He is willing to do anything to placate you Jedi, even if it cripples Daramin's growth."

"It is not the Jedi nor Trora's cooperation which is crippling Daramin's growth," Qui-Gon argued. "You have made some mistakes, Executor. So have your Council, some of your Board members, and seemingly insignificant business owners all over this planet. Fighting our teams when we saw the need to use the militia to keep peace in the remote colonies was foolish. It raised our suspicions. Ignoring some of those colonies made it worse, and I won't even begin to speak to the elaborate ruse devised by the Mining Guild of Skoda." The Master began to pace slowly, putting himself in a strategic position separate from his apprentice, who waited in silence. "This has been going on for far longer than the eleven weeks Obi-Wan and I have been here. I found records as far back as two years that Jedi have kept, attesting to small events which, if they hadn't intervened or caught on quickly, could have been used to discredit them or worse..." He turned sharply and faced the Executor with a glare. "...kill them."

"And why would we want to kill the Jedi?" the Executor challenged snidely. "Kill one team and there would just be another coming in right on its heels."

"If it looked like an accident, or the unfortunate consequence of facing pirates out in some remote colony, it might be a good way of keeping a particular team from following through on an investigation," Qui-Gon suggested. "Anything to divert attention from your actual intentions."

The Executor laughed harshly. "You're crazy. How can you have evidence of our internal feelings? All you have is rumor, suspicion, perhaps some transmission from Skoda that makes no sense considering all things. How does that prove our actual intentions?"

Qui-Gon merely started to pace again. Obi-Wan spoke up from his place. "Trora is not the only Daramindi who has pledged us testimony, or at least a statement."

The Executor's head whipped in his direction, alarmed. Then Qui-Gon added, "If you had been able to crack my code, you would know what evidence we have."

"I don't have your reports, and I resent your accusation!" The Executor clenched his hands into fierce red fists. "Did you make this appointment to insult me? Perhaps we are right, and the Jedi have no business being on Daramin anymore, if all they can do is annoy and frustrate its leaders!"

Qui-Gon was not bothered by the Executor's anger. "I made this appointment to give you a chance to respond first, before I made any reports or accusations public. If you have anything to say, for yourself or for Daramin, you should say it now so that I may correct any mistakes in my report. Otherwise, it will be transmitted to Coruscant tomorrow, and all you can do is sit back and wait for the repercussions. And if you think that the end of our duration here will be the end of trouble, think again. The next team will be briefed in full when they arrive."

The Executor seethed for a moment before bursting into a torrent of what I assumed were curses in his own language, sharp and full of harsh consonant sounds. "This is precisely what the Homeworld Alliance means," he finally added in Basic. "The Jedi are meddlers. They're holding us back for no reason other than that they can! They can't do anything to stop us from forming our own government or appointing the people we choose into positions of power, so they try to slow us down in other ways. We could be in the Senate already, and making millions from exports and industry! But no, we must progress as the Jedi see fit, and they see all kinds of reasons not to let us succeed. You can remove me," he threw in, pointing fiercely at Qui-Gon, "but the Common Council will just vote in another who thinks the same way I do. And the people of Daramin elect them, so you can't get rid of them. There are enough of us united against you! If we so wanted, we could turn the militia on you and force you out."

If he expected Qui-Gon to argue him on any one of his points, the Executor was disappointed. The Master paused his pacing long enough to take a deep breath and let it out, his eyes seemingly elsewhere. "I can see that your mind is made up about the Jedi," he quietly said at last, feeling comfortable enough to tuck his hands into his robe sleeves as usual. "I wish that you had opened your mind enough to see things from our point of view, to understand why we must make the decisions that we make, but to ask you to do so now would be fruitless. It does comfort me that not everyone on Daramin feels as you do." He resumed pacing, bringing himself now very close to the Executor, who seemed to shrink back despite his burly Nego bodyguards. "You should have sat down with the Jedi, sought one of us to listen to your concerns when the Homeworld Alliance first began to feel this way. You yourself, Executor, could have come to the Jedi and talked. I would have listened, perhaps even championed your cause before the Senate - but you chose another means of dealing with the Jedi and the law first. Your actions have shown me that you are not ready to expand without the Jedi Order watching over you. Now, there will be no re-negotiating of the treaty. If only you had been patient and dealt honestly with us, it might have come to a better end."

The Executor stared at him, mouth agape. One of the Nego stiffened, the fur on his neck bristling. "Do not tell us these stories now. It's too late."

"I speak only the truth," Qui-Gon said curtly. "The Homeworld Alliance has chosen the wrong way to get the treaties revised so that they can continue to build Daramin to their liking. This method will have the opposite effect - the scrutiny will be that much worse now."

"If you can get yourself and your report off Daramin," the other Nego snarled.

The Master raised one eyebrow. "Is that a threat?"

The Executor was lost for words, but he had a parting shot. His fist came up lightning fast, but the Force was faster. Qui-Gon effortlessly evaded the strike and came back with another searing glare. "Leave here. Now," he said in a low, dangerous voice.

Each of us, myself included, earned a vicious look from the Executor before he shouldered between his escorts and made for the door, his steps quick and light across the floor. The two Nego eyed the Jedi and their ready stances before going after their leader.

Qui-Gon remained motionless until he was sure the door was closed and our visitors were gone. Then he let out a huge, aggravated sigh. "That was not at all what I intended."

"You couldn't have prevented that, Master," Obi-Wan assured. "They came here in a hostile mood. He even brought guards, not colleagues."

The Master turned to find me. "Have you finished packing?"

"No, I came down here to tell you two I needed your things so I could finish," I answered, prying myself out of my corner hiding place. "Do we need to get out of here like...right now?"

"No," he said bluntly. "If we leave now, it will look like the threat scared us. At least now we have confirmation of the threat. But..." He glanced at Obi-Wan before continuing. "...we will leave tomorrow. There must be someplace else we can go temporarily, until I can transmit everything to Coruscant and request the new team."

"I think I know of a few possibilities," Obi-Wan said dutifully. "Let me make some calls."

"Good. Do that."

The Padawan nodded and disappeared immediately to do so. Qui-Gon returned to me. "Let's go get the rest of our supplies and pack them up."

The Jedi kept watch during the night, one after the other, but in the morning reported nothing that would legitimize the threat made against us. Yet, after a decent enough breakfast, I was told to get my stuff and be ready to go - Qui-Gon was not about to take chances. Obi-Wan had contacted the administrator in one of the nearby local settlements that he had visited - the one with the lake - and received a proper invitation to go there and stay over as long as we needed. The administrator had no clue what was going on in Takra, so Qui-Gon planned to take full advantage of his blithe ignorance. I looked around the house one last time, giving the dead hulk of CQ a fond pat, before we left, and gazed anxiously around me as we walked through Takra to the spaceport. It was a nice enough city, after all, and the antics of a handful of its leaders didn't seem to have trickled down to the general populous. The mountains and the clear blue skies were still pretty, anyway.

Besides off-planet transport, the spaceport had landspeeders available for use, so we took one across the countryside and around the mountains to the quaint lakeside town Obi-Wan had visited once about two weeks prior. I leaned my head back against the seat of the speeder, feeling the warm sun full on my face and the weight of my fighting stick on my shoulder as the wind skimmed all around us, whistling in my ears and tossing my hair wildly. Leaving Takra did make me feel safe again; though he had said everything was fine, I felt Qui-Gon's inner turmoil in the Force. He must have heard or seen something while on watch over the past few nights to make him so keen to leave. We only had six days or so left of the mission, but the two Jedi had yet to contact Coruscant and find out when the next team would be arriving, or what arrangements had been made for our departure. The Master was still utterly engrossed in work, and even now as we grazed across fields of tall grass at over a hundred miles an hour, his eyes were on a datapad instead of the scenery.

To my surprise, the administrator of the town was Nego, for his friendliness and cooperative spirit were unique among his species. Just about every other Nego I had come into contact with was either surly or part of the plots against the Jedi - or both. He bowed kindly in welcome to the Jedi, and offered us a place in his own residence overlooking the lake if we cared. Master Qui-Gon graciously thanked him for the offer but turned it down. "I don't want to bring you any trouble, my friend," he explained. "It would be safer for you and yours if we stayed in private quarters somewhere, preferably out of sight."

The administrator looked surprised, but only shrugged. "As you wish, Master Jedi. Our town is smaller than it looks, there are a few empty places up the hill and back in the forest. Take your pick. But surely you won't turn down a meal with me?"

We did not, and thank goodness, because I was already ravenous for lunch and our host's table overflowed with delicious fare. His minor estate stood at the lake's edge, with a porch that jutted right out over the water where we sat long after the food was cleared away, enjoying a moment's peace amid the chaos and the blush of sunshine on our skin. The Master told the administrator as little as he could, hinting only to a conflict of ideals that had turned ugly, which was well enough received. "I was afraid something like that might happen some day," the Nego commented. "Things were changing a little too fast for my tastes. I hope that your stay here is much more pleasant."

"It already is," Qui-Gon said warmly, bobbing his head in a sort of bow.

I leaned over to Obi-Wan. "Is this the lake you wanted to take a dip in when it was so hot the other week?"

"Yes, this is the one," he smiled. "It's not as warm today, though."

"Oh, but it's still nice." I looked up at the trees overshadowing the porch, at the narrow arrowhead-shaped leaves fluttering in the wind. "And I'm going to miss it when we get back to Coruscant. Warts and all."

"Perhaps we'll have to find you some more wildflowers to preserve," he teased. I glanced at him, and could only grin in response.

Night drew on earlier with the sun dropping behind the mountains, though they were more distant than from Takra's perspective, and a cool evening began to wrap us in misty blues and purples. The smallish cabin the Master chose at the far edge of the town sank into darkness more quickly underneath the trees, but I had gotten plenty of sleep and was itching to get outside and enjoy the loveliness before it was gone, before I had to go back to the confines of the Jedi Temple and leave stargazing, flower-picking, and rustling leaves behind. Qui-Gon seemed distracted in exactly the opposite way I intended, I sensed a great weight on his mind whenever I bent the Force toward him. Whenever he felt me using it, he glanced toward me with a vague half-smile of acknowledgement, but he didn't once divert from his work or his deep thoughts - so deep I could not fathom them even with the ability to see into him. After a time I decided such exercise was bothering him, adding to my desire to get out for a bit. So, when I had both Jedi with me in the main room, I asked the Master, "Can I go for a walk?"

He looked up, his brow furrowing. "I don't know that it's safe."

"Oh come on, Master. We haven't had any sign that trouble followed us here, or even knows where we are," I pleaded. "I want to get out, things are so stressful right now and I just need to breathe. I want to look up at the stars and be out in nature once more before I have to go back to Coruscant. After all," I added with an innocent expression, "that is why you brought me here. So I can see this world and all its beauty."

He sighed hard, but I knew I had convinced him. His eyes flicked to his Padawan. "Obi-Wan, go with her. I don't want her going out alone."

Obi-Wan couldn't stop the smile that crept onto his face, perking his dimples. "Of course, Master. As you wish."

Qui-Gon snorted in return. "Go on. Have some fun."

"We will, Master," I flippantly assured him. "Take it easy. Don't work too hard."

"I think it's too late for that." He waved a hand dismissively at us to get us to leave him alone with his datapad. I squealed delightedly as I bounced for the door with a Padawan gliding right behind.

The last traces of sunset were just bleeding from the sky as we stepped outside, and a sweet, blue evening lay on the land. Insects other than the ubiquitous sindi beetles chirped from thickets and from the reedy marges of the lake some distance below us, which I could locate by the faint whiff of the fishy smell that I always equated with lakesides and baiting hooks with minnows. Light mists hung at the edges of the trees. The paths and roads between houses were wide and firm, and easy to follow even in the growing darkness, though every once in a while a house would have a lamp lit outside. Daramindi of all types lived here, most were simple and pleasant, and already heading for bed at this hour, allowing Obi-Wan and I to feel quite safe as we walked along some of the broader roads down out of the forest. The trees suddenly opened up, and before us lay a wide meadow, gray under the dusky sky. If there were flowers, I couldn't see them in the dark, but sweet scents mingled with the lush, wet, green smell of grass and dew. "It's so beautiful," I breathed, leaving Obi-Wan's side and stepping gingerly into the tall bunches of grass that lapped at the road. Above us, the brightest stars were already visible, though the rich indigo of twilight still colored the dome of sky stretching between the arms of the trees all around the meadow. As I lowered my eyes from the sky to watch where I was stepping, a tiny light buzzed through my line of vision. Startled, I followed it, and gasped as dozens of flashes suddenly erupted from the air around me. My trek through the grass had raised some kind of insects, which swirled up from the ground and all around me.

Behind me, Obi-Wan laughed. "Look, glimmerflies."

"Glimmerflies?" I stopped thrashing through the meadow and looked around, amazed at the awakening dance of miniscule lights. Just like Earthly fireflies, they waited until the right moment of twilight to come out, and now flitted back and forth over the meadow with their little lamps. I giggled as Obi-Wan came out to join me. "Is that what they're called here?"

"Why, what are they called on your world?"

"Fireflies, lightning bugs..." I watched them flit by over his head. "When I was a kid we used to go out in the summer just about this time of night, and try to catch them in jars. Of course, they didn't live long if we did catch them, but it was the fun of trying."

"We can do that," the Padawan said brightly. "But we can't keep them." We were well out into the meadow by now, our feet damp from the dew, glimmerflies passing closely all around us. He reached out with both hands and deftly scooped one of the floating lights out of the air, trapping it tightly. "Got one," he breathed with a smile as he brought his cupped hands down close to his body and tilted them so one was firmly on top of the other.

"I hope you didn't squish it," I teased him as I leaned in close to see.

Obi-Wan's boyish smile glowed on his lips. "No, I didn't. I wouldn't hurt it." He laughed a little. "I can feel it tickling my hand as it crawls around."

"They don't bite, do they?" I asked dubiously.

"Not that I know of."

He gestured for me to come closer, and as I did, he opened his hands slowly, carefully. I had a split-second glimpse of the winged bug before it zipped off Obi-Wan's fingertips and escaped into the night. "Oh! Obi!"

"Sorry," the Padawan said sheepishly. "They're fast."

"No kidding." I stood entranced for a moment by the interplay of teeny lights, and then wandered off to try to catch one of them, taking a few ineffectual swipes at them. Even ones I tried to head off closer to the ground dodged out of my way, I was unable to catch a single one. "They don't flash," I noted as I chased after them.

Somewhere behind me Obi-Wan's voice murmured, "What?"

"Where I come from, they blink. That's why we call them lightning bugs."

"I suspect these glimmerflies are not quite the same," he said dryly.

"Well, duh," I retorted, lunging at a low-flying light that darted out of my hands just before I could clap them around it. "You'd think they'd be much easier to chase when they don't blink."

Obi-Wan chuckled throatily again, and then I heard him exclaim wordlessly. Turning, I saw that he had caught another glimmerfly. He held his hands close to his heart, gazing down at them as if they held a rare treasure. I swished back through the long grass to him, chiding, "Don't let this one go right away."

"I'll try not," he agreed, still keeping his hands cupped one over the other even as I joined him and waited. "Maybe I should let you hold it."

I wrinkled up my nose. "And let it tickle me? Until I know whether they bite, no way."

"They don't bite," Obi-Wan assured with a laugh. "I'll prove it. I'll hold this one long enough."

I grinned daringly at him, sidling up as close as I could to see. Just then, a faint trilling came from between his hands. Both of us let our jaws drop in surprise - the insect was singing. I looked up and met Obi-Wan's sparkling eyes, and we beamed at each other. "It sings, too," I whispered.

"Maybe it's a sign it wants to be let out." He opened his hands. The two-note song ceased, and after a second of crawling around on his palm, the glimmerfly lit its white lamp and took wing.

"Do they all sing?" I couldn't help but squeal.

"I don't know." Obi-Wan looked around and snatched at a few more. I followed his lead, and soon we were both sweeping back and forth in the field trying to catch glimmerflies. Anyone passing on the road would have shaken their heads at the two of us acting like children, caught up in the delight of nature's mystery. At last I heard Obi-Wan's "Got one!" and dashed over to him.

"Is it singing?"

"Hold on. Give it a moment."

"Well, don't squish it!"

"I won't squish it."

"Is that...?"

We both held our breath and leaned in. The trapped glimmerfly sang one phrase, a melancholy three-note line, and then fell silent. Obi-Wan and I stood there, staring at his hands, our faces so close we could feel each others' breath, warm in the cool night. Then, the same three notes repeated, becoming their own fragment of a song. I smiled cautiously. "I keep waiting for the rest."

"I know. It sounds like the beginning of a song," Obi-Wan breathlessly agreed. "I wonder. Is it a love song? A freedom song?"

The words "love song" made me blush. "I don't know. It's pretty. But sad."

Just then, as we stood there in the tall grass, holding private audience with the captured glimmerfly, we heard the same song fragment from the air around us, though in a higher octave. One of the swirling lights disengaged from the dance above and landed on the back of Obi-Wan's hand, harmonizing with the song of the trapped bug. The Padawan gently opened his hands, and the calling stopped as both insects took off. "What do you think?" Obi-Wan quietly wondered. "Were they mates?"

"I don't know," I answered, suddenly very aware of his closeness, his warmth. "Maybe."

His arms dropped to his sides, his robe drifting into place around him, as he turned to me. We were already touching, the hem of his robe draping against my hand, protecting it from the growing chill of night, but that slight shift in movement brought us even closer. I looked up into his eyes, their color hidden from me in the darkness but sparkling with starlight, and failed to think of something to say. Obi-Wan met my gaze for a moment, his face solemn but not as intense as usual; no furrow knit his brows for once, but he seemed unsure, for he could not smile. Wanting to put him at ease, and even encourage the spark I could sense trembling inside him, I stepped so close to him that our bodies touched, glad when he did not back away. His gaze faltered, dropping from my eyes to my lips and rising again as if in question. Everything within me begged him to do it, I knew he wanted to, and I unconsciously leaned in to meet him. I had always been intrigued by his lips, his mouth, so delicate and yet stern, looking so fragile and tender, made more for a singer or a lover than a Jedi. They parted to draw a deep breath, and I glanced up slightly to take in Obi-Wan's beautiful, yearning expression as he began to tilt his head downward, just before I closed my eyes. His lips met mine hesitantly, paused, and then returned a little more confidently, though every bit as soft as I imagined them to be.

The first kiss must have been all the catalyst he needed, for he did not pull back but continued such gentle, firm kisses that I started to wonder if he was as inexperienced as his Master's offhand comment suggested. I felt his fingertips, just peeking beyond the cuff of his robe sleeve, brush my cheek and then hold there, tiny spots of heat in the cold darkness. My hands sought anchor and found it around his waist, but gingerly, as the cool metal of his lightsaber pressed against my right forearm. His mouth molded almost perfectly to mine, each subsequent kiss growing longer, more tender, as Obi-Wan's other arm came around me and drew me closer yet to him. He broke off for a moment, to catch his breath, and I couldn't resist teasing, sucking lightly at his lower lip before he could get too far away. His gasp puffed warmly across my cheek, and then his lips descended again, more fiercely this time, until our mouths involuntarily parted and our tongues brushed against each other. My racing heart inflicted the pain of thrill on me, and I had to stop, to breathe, before the rest of me could seize up. Obi-Wan needed the pause as well, and my eyes hungrily sought a vision of him, hoping that everything I saw indicated that he was as happy in this moment as I was. His long, dark eyelashes hooded his eyes from me, but they were on my face, trying to take in everything despite the lack of light. His fingertips still touched my cheek lightly, and even stroked it very slowly. I stretched up to press my lips to his one more time when the worst sort of interruption made us both gasp: his comlink went off.

Obi-Wan had just extracted it from its pouch when we both heard his Master urgently hiss his name. "Yes, Master?" Obi-Wan acknowledged, trying to keep the exasperation from his voice.

"Where are you?" came the response. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, Master, we're...fine," the Padawan said, his eyes crinkling into a smile as I hugged him around his waist and laid my head on his chest. "What is it?"

"I have sensed a disturbance," Qui-Gon said seriously, "somewhere in your direction. Have you felt nothing?"

"I'm sorry, Master, I've been somewhat distracted." Obi-Wan paused to clear his throat. "Stacey was chasing glimmerflies in a field."

"Oh yeah, blame me," I muttered, hoping Qui-Gon couldn't hear it over the comlink channel.

In the space of my comment, Obi-Wan sank into the Force, and I felt his body tense. "What do you think it is?" he asked into the comlink.

"I don't know," his Master responded, still speaking quietly. "I have not seen or heard anything up here that indicates trouble."

"I sense it now, Master."

I felt outward from me with the Force, but all I could sense was Obi-Wan's mind - and his growing unease. "I want you two to come back immediately," Qui-Gon demanded. "I'm sorry if this cuts short any of your fun."

"It's all right, Master. We're on our way." Replacing his comlink, Obi-Wan gave me a helpless look and a shrug. I nodded my agreement, and allowed him to guide me by the arm still around me, back across the field to the road.

We started up the road toward the trees at a brisk clip, the Padawan's hand falling away from me as he gathered speed. "Are you sure he didn't just sense...us?" I wondered as I kept up at his side.

Obi-Wan chuckled. "It doesn't work like that. Thankfully." He fell silent for a moment or two, glancing around us as we passed into the forested area of town and plunged into a thicker darkness. "I don't know what it is, but I do sense something," he added, more quietly.

"Okay," I relented. "Just so long as Master wasn't trying to bust up our party or anything." But I grinned at Obi-Wan to let him know I didn't honestly suspect Qui-Gon of such a petty interference.

We were only a few blocks from the cabin when Obi-Wan abruptly turned a corner to the right. "Um, quarters are this way," I told him, stopping in the intersection and gesturing straight ahead.

"No, they're this way," he insisted, turning in place to address me but still walking. "Trust me."

I knew beyond doubt that he was wrong, but he didn't stop, so I had no choice but to follow in frustration. Up past the second or third house along the street - all dark and silent - Obi-Wan suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me into a gap between the close-set buildings. Before I could open my mouth to protest, he pushed me against the wall and covered my entire body with his, pinning me with his hips, his right hand on the wall by my head and his feet stationed just on either side of mine. The fingers of his left hand loosely covered my lips as I fought to catch my breath and gather my wits. "Hold still," he hissed.

I obeyed, although startled and utterly mystified by his behavior. His body was pressed completely against mine, chest to hips to thighs, and I could feel every curve of him. He was not breathing too heavily, but I could feel each expansion and contraction of his chest. His head remained turned to watch the direction we had come and the street out beyond the pitch-black alley. I couldn't help the ideas that popped into my mind as I waited, looking up at Obi-Wan's throat just inches from my face, feeling the strength of his body poised against me. Just when I wanted to ask him what he saw or heard that made him act so strangely, both of us saw a burly-armed Nego carrying a club or some similar weapon stalk by, his ears lifting as his head swiveled in search. The creature's steps slowed as he came abreast, and he looked keenly into some of the shadows across the street. I swallowed hard, trying to control my breath and heart so I could think, for at the moment fear paralyzed my limbs even though I knew Obi-Wan's body concealed mine from hunting eyes, and he could take care of anything. The lightsaber at his side was not trapped between us, but remained in reach beneath a fold of his robe. Obi-Wan lifted his hand from the wall and waved it subtly toward the street, and my heart leaped in excitement when I heard a corresponding phantom sound somewhere beyond us, which sent the Nego lunging after nothing. The Padawan waited until he was sure that his cast sound had done its work and our stalker was nowhere in sight before he eased off me, and backed further down the space between houses until we came to a corner. He shoved me to the left, sending me back towards the adjoining road we had just come up a few minutes before - the road which truly did lead to quarters. I waited at the edge of the building until he had a look around, and then darted out, taking care not to scuff my feet loudly on the dirt road. Obi-Wan's hand came to rest on my back, practically pushing me so I would keep pace with him as he hurried forward. In this fashion, we made it back to the cabin safely in almost no time at all.

Qui-Gon was standing in the main room when we rushed inside and closed the door behind us. "Somebody was following us!" I said immediately.

"Did you see who it was?" the Master pressed.

"A Nego," Obi-Wan answered. "No one that I recall meeting, though. He had a weapon."

Qui-Gon's eyes shifted from his apprentice to me. "Are you all right?"

"Thanks to Obi-Wan's quick reflexes, yeah," I said with a grin.

He sighed through his nose, his face tight with displeasure. "That's good. Unfortunately, it seems we're not far enough from threat. They've already tracked us here."

"I'll take first watch, Master," Obi-Wan instantly volunteered. "Go on and get some sleep."

Qui-Gon nodded, but didn't move. "What are we going to do?" I inquired of him.

"We need to keep moving," he grumbled under his breath. "At least until we find a place on Daramin we can be sure is safe."

I thought about all the places we had been, and wondered about the places I had not seen at all. "What about the Be'a'lai? We were always safe among them. Ba'nom or Dindee or something - we'd be protected there. No one else on Daramin would dare make trouble for the Be'a'lai, they know they've got their own forces and don't really care what anyone else on the planet thinks of them."

"She's right," Obi-Wan said. "We need to get to Ba'nom. Fast."

Qui-Gon nodded again, more resolutely. "In the morning." He looked straight at Obi-Wan, who was preparing to set up watch and didn't notice, and then at me, and winked as he turned to head for the rear bedroom.

I stood in silence for a moment, puzzled. Does that mean he knows what Obi-Wan and I were doing in that field...? I looked over at Obi-Wan, who cocked his head curiously. "What?"

"Nothing," I dismissed. I stepped over to him and ignored the screaming of my fearfully-excited heart in order to give him a little kiss on the cheek. "Good night. Take good care of us."

...TO BE CONTINUED!

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