I don't think I had ever been as angry with my Master as I was that night. The Supreme Chancellor had cordially invited us to return with him to Naboo for the coronation of the new queen. He said that, since Obi-Wan and I had done such a service to the planet eight years before, that he would very much like for us to attend the ceremony, in which Padmé Amidala would pass her crown on to the next young woman.

I wanted to see her so badly, I could taste it. Unfortunately, my Master could taste it too, because he took it upon himself to decline the invitation, stating that he and I would be occupied with some sort of training exercise or another.

"Why can't we go Master? It's just for a couple of days! Surely our training can wait until we return!" I implored.

But my pleas fell on deaf ears, and I was forced to run a hundred laps around the Temple's vast main gymnasium for questioning my Master's decision, at the completion of which I was sentenced to an hour of meditation so that I might rethink my priorities.

By curfew, I was seething. I needed to get out, get away, let off some steam, lest I kill my unsuspecting Master in his sleep. I waited until Obi- Wan was snoring loudly, then sneaked away from the Temple as I had done so many times before when I would race speeders in the underbelly of Coruscant.

But tonight, I knew that speed was not what would give me the release I needed so badly. I did not know exactly what I was searching for; all I knew was that when I found it, I would know it.

I mind-tricked an air taxi driver and made my way to the "entertainment" district, which was really a row of seedy nightclubs, lined up one after the other. I passed several of them; flashing, noisy places such as The Outlander and Supernova, when I was inexplicably drawn down a dark alleyway to a place called The Renegade. I stepped inside and was nearly blown over by the pounding music, the smell of spice and sweat, and the beings that seemed to be packed in this small room nearly wall to wall.

I made my way over to the bar and mind-tricked the barkeeper for a free helping of Corellian whisky. Of course, I'd never tasted this wretched drink before, but it was on of Master Obi-Wan's favorites, so I thought I would take my chances.

Mistake.

My eyes began to burn, as did my nose, and as I forced a swallow, I feared that I might retch into my glass. I noticed the beings at the counter staring at me in amusement, and quickly shot them looks that warned them to mind their own business if they wanted to keep their arms. I was about to brave my way through the rest of my glass when I sensed a disturbance coming from a dark corner of the club.
I managed to push my way through the endless sea of patrons, and finally came upon the disturbing scene. A human male, about my height but with much more brawn, flanked by male beings of various other species, had cornered a small, blonde female, who was trying to fend the group off with her words. She and the human male argued, and I could sense that she was beginning to become frantic as her eyes darted around her area, looking for a means of escape. The human kept creeping toward her menacingly, all but bracing her against the wall, as I felt her fear begin to radiate.

"Is there a problem here?" I asked calmly as the group spun around.

The human male looked me up and down, then glared. "The only problem is Jedi scum that don't mind their own business, boy," he growled, as his alien friends chuckled in agreement.

I stared at the man with the most intimidating eyes I could manage, then looked over his shoulder to the woman now cowering in the corner.

"This guy bothering you, Miss?" I inquired as I looked back at her harassers.

The man stepped in front of the woman, blocking my view of her. "I said, this is none of your business. Now get out of here before I make you wish you never came," he said.

I felt the anger welling inside me, and I was about to tell the guy to go ahead and try, when I sensed his next move. Before he could swing his fist at me, I ignited my light saber and removed the threat. He slumped to the floor, clutching his arm and howling, as his friends looked at him, then at me, and ran.

"Come on," I said to the girl as a curious crowd began to gather. "I'll get you out of here."

She gratefully placed her hand in mine, and we left the club quickly.

"Thank you," she said breathlessly as we made our way on to the street.

"You're welcome," I replied. "Who was that creep, anyway?"

The girl rolled her eyes. "My old boyfriend," she said as she brushed a stray blonde hair from her face. "He doesn't want to be my 'old' boyfriend. Can't accept that it's over. Of course, I've tried to tell him that the breakup was his idea, seeing as how I found him in his apartment with another girl in his bed." She adjusted her low-cut blouse and smoothed her skirt.

In the street lights, I was able to get a better picture of this girl; she was small, at least a half-meter shorter than me, with blonde hair that was situated messily atop her head, and bright green eyes. She had a round face with rosy cheeks and full lips that seemed to pout. She was pretty enough, to be sure, though nowhere near as beautiful as Padmé, and there was an air of.wisdom about her. Something told me that this young woman, who appeared to be about nineteen or twenty, had had her share of experiences with men.

"So, Miss," I ventured, "do you have a name?"

She smirked flirtatiously. "Do you?" she replied, "or should I just call you 'Jedi?'"

"I'm Anakin," I said as I extended my hand graciously and shook hers. Her hands were so soft.

"Kaia," she replied. "Pleased to meet you, Anakin."

"Pleased to meet you," I repeated as she unassumingly wrapped her arm around mine.

"So," she said, "you gonna take me home? Daris is probably pretty steamed right now, and I don't want to find him waiting for me when I get home."

I assumed that Daris was the gentleman I had just dismembered. Somehow I doubted that he would be bothering Kaia anytime soon, but there was something about her that made me want to say yes. It was something about the way I was feeling.I felt energized and.curious. Besides, what better way to get back at Obi-Wan than to do the one thing he tried so desperately to keep me from doing?

"I'd be glad to," I offered. "Do you live far?"

"We'll have to grab a taxi," she said. "But it isn't far."

I smiled as seductively as I could. "Great," I said. "Let's go."

We were able to get a taxi quickly, and when we boarded, Kaia sat very close to me, despite the ample room. I simply studied her face and even ventured in to her mind; she obviously wanted me to hear what she was thinking, for she made no effort to shield her salacious thoughts. The things her mind was suggesting would have made a Hutt blush, and I turned away in embarrassment.

I couldn't turn away for long, though, as I felt her hands beginning to stroke the inside of my thigh, leaving what seemed like paths of fire in their wake. My muscles tensed, and I shifted as I began to feel a distinctive stirring in my loins, a sensation I only previously experienced while thinking of Padmé.

I heard her thoughts again, telling me to touch her. I gingerly placed my arm around her shoulder, then casually slid my hand underneath her blouse. I had to suppress a moan as, for the first time, I felt the glorious softness of the female breast. She threw her head back and inhaled as a smile of pleasure crossed her full lips. Impulsively, I lowered my head and placed my lips on hers.

I was shocked when she responded by parting my lips with her tongue. I slid my tongue into her mouth in response, and it brushed hers in a seductive and delightful dance. I was further aroused when she nipped at my lips with her teeth. We were only interrupted as the taxi came to a halt.

"We're here," she said breathlessly as we stood and exited the vehicle in front of a high-rising building. "This way," she ordered, as she led me to the turbolift and pressed the button for her floor. As the lift rose, she tugged on the sides of my vest and pulled me to her, against the wall of the lift, as our lips met again. I placed my hands on either side of her head as she worked up and down my neck with her lips and tongue. I captured her chin in one of my hands, then pressed my lips hard against hers once again as I caressed the flushed skin of her chest with the other.

The lift finally reached its destination, and Kaia led me down a short hallway, where she stopped in front of a door and entered the keycode. No sooner did the door slide open than she pulled me inside, nearly bringing both of us to the floor.

"Sorry," she mumbled, as she began to remove my vest and part my tunic, lavishing my exposed chest with kisses.

"Ooh.it's alright," I moaned, as I began to slide my hands underneath her blouse again, working to remove it.

She stopped her ministrations long enough to lead me over to a sofa, where she pushed me down and straddled me. She began unfastening my pants, and my arousal intensified as she slid a hand down the front of them and gripped me.

I moaned as she smiled devilishly. "You like that, huh?" she teased as she rubbed me until I thought I might explode.

"Oh, yes," I replied huskily.

"Then I'm sure you'll like this," she commented as she slid off of my lap and freed me from my intruding pants. She lowered her head and took me into her mouth, licking and sucking deliciously as I tensed and groaned.

She continued for several minutes, as I thanked the Force for feelings like this. As she continued, my mind began to drift, and it drifted right to Padmé. I was overcome by a pang of guilt, as if I was betraying her on some level. I squirmed away, and Kaia lifted her head, puzzled.

"I can't.stop.we have to stop." I panted. My body wanted to continue, but my mind would not allow it.

"What's wrong?" she asked as she brushed a strand of blonde hair away from her face. "Don't you like it? Don't you like me?"

"Yes, I do," I admitted. "But I."

"What is it, another girl?" she asked jokingly. "I didn't think Jedi were allowed to have girlfriends."

"We're not," I explained. "And if I let this happen, I'll only be using you. I mean, Kaia, if we do this, it doesn't mean we'll be growing old together. I don't want to do that to you."

"And you think that if I sleep with you tonight, I'll be so smitten that I'll pine for you the rest of my life?" she scoffed. She moved her face closer to mine and whispered seductively to me, "I know how it is, Anakin. I like you. More than that, I want you. Sometimes, two people can want one another for the night and let bygones be bygones the next day. Trust me. I'm not going to come looking for you afterward," she said as she subtly began to remove her blouse. "But for tonight," she continued, as I was entranced by the vision of her bare breasts.

She took my hands in hers and placed them on her breasts, and I caressed them as the nipples began to harden. I took one of them into my mouth, and she sighed in delight.

"Take me to bed," she ordered. "Now. I need you inside of me, now."

Guilt flew out the window. I might be a Jedi, but I'm still an eighteen- year old boy. Do you think that male, teenage, Jedi are immune from the effects of hormones? Well, we're not.

I lifted her up and carried her into her bedroom, kissing her all the way there. When we reached the bed, I lowered her to it as she tugged at the waistband of my pants to pull them down. I cooperated by kicking them aside as I hitched her skirt around her waist.

I parted her thighs with my hands, then ran my hand up her leg to the place I most wanted to be. I felt evidence of her readiness on my fingers, and lowered myself on top of her, entering in to her slowly.

I had never experienced such a feeling in my life. Up until that point, I thought that what she had done to me with her mouth was a sensation that would be unmatched. But as I began to stroke in and out of her, slowly and awkwardly, as she scraped her fingernails up and down my back, I felt a rush I had only come close to experiencing while flying.

After several minutes, I began to feel her body become tenser as her back arched and her legs wrapped around me. Then suddenly, I began to feel her walls spasming around me, and I felt the unadulterated delight of my seed leaving my body as I practically screamed.

Afterward, I lowered my sweaty head to her chest, and inhaled and exhaled as my body trembled. She absently stroked my hair and wound my Padawan braid around her finger. When I regained my strength, I raised up and kissed her gently on the forehead.

"That." she began, "was amazing. You must have done this before."

"Actually, no, I haven't," I admitted shyly.

"Well, I'm glad to have been the one to corrupt you," she said mirthfully as I stood and began gathering my clothes that were dispersed throughout the room.

I smiled. "I have to go," I said.

"Yeah. It was nice to meet you, Anakin," she chuckled.

"You too," I replied as I struggled to get into my clothes.

When I left Kaia's apartment, I felt strangely different.more mature, wiser.I only hoped that I would one day be privileged enough to experience that act with the only woman I would ever love, my angel Padmé.