Please enjoy yourselves!
By the way, thank you, Dorayaki, The Dancing Cavalier, LuvObi, Super Tinfoil Man Part 2, zara (hope I've got it right…), Padamai and Boss Aayla Security, and also anyone who's been reading this piece!
Warning: This chapter contains some cussing words that might NOT be suitable for children under the age of 13.
Chapter 6
#2 was on his way back to the restroom when someone from behind a pillar suddenly grabbed him to the back of the pillar as well.
"Thank the Force you're all right, #2." #1 said sincerely with relief.
"All right? No, I am NOT all right!" #2 said in anger, "This is the sloppiest dinner and restaurant I've ever seen! And that Sirren Esta woman just WOULDN'T leave me in PEACE!"
"I saw her almost kiss you, Lanny! You lady-killer!" #3 slapped his shoulder in praise.
"Yeah, try that once yourself, Junior." #2 said coldly, and complained in annoyance as he recalled Sirren's freaky behavior, "Does ANYONE still care about PERSONAL space anymore!"
"But what shall we do now?" #1 said worriedly, "Knight Sirren Esta's still not leaving."
"Who cares?" #2 said, annoyed by that name, "We just go back to the Temple and leave her here reflecting upon her creepy behavior."
"But it's not nice to leave her alone here while she's still waiting for you."
"Me?" #2 arched an eyebrow, "You mean YOUR! It's actually YOUR mess!" he steadied his breath angrily, "Wait a minute," he thought for a while, "it's all Original's fault!"
"H-How come, #2?"
"Why did he have to look so appealing to that Sirren Esta woman in the first place?"
"Gonny!" #3 bounced in sudden excitement.
"Okay, Junior, I know his name's Gonny, but #1 and I are talking about something important."
"And sunshine!" #3's excitement was increasing.
"No, Junior, we're not talking about Original and that kid." #2 tried his best to stay patient with the ever-cheerful #3.
"Um, #2? I think tiger means…" #1 gestured #2 to look at the direction his finger is pointing.
"Holy Force!" #2 muttered, "They're having their date HERE?" Then realization struck him like a tidal wave. "So that Sirren Esta woman was talking about Original back there in the restroom! She saw Original sitting with the boy and she heard our talk, then she quickly assumed that Original was trying to save his friend from the boy! Sith, this is getting complicated! And that waiter! He was actually holding Original's dish!"
"Then what shall we do?" #1 said in despair, "We've been practically ruining Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan's special night…"
"Don't worry, Steve!" #3 patted his back, "Gonny's a tough dude!"
"Doesn't show." #2 commented as he looked at the quiet pair. Qui-Gon was obviously having a bad time, and Obi-Wan didn't even look at him.
Qui-Gon heaved a frustrated sigh and called the waiter.
"What can I do for you, sir?"
"I've ordered an Oolurian Steak quite some time ago, but it still hasn't come yet. And I've told another waiter about that, but he never returned."
"I'm deeply sorry for that, sir." The waiter bowed, "Your dish will be served in no time."
After the waiter left, Qui-Gon opened his mouth to speak tentatively, "Obi-Wan," he took a deep breath, "I'm sorry…"
Obi-Wan turned his gaze from the windows to look at his Master cautiously; hurt was still lingering in his eyes.
"I'm now trying to save our special night – though I am beginning to doubt if it will ever be romantic – so I hope you will co-operate with me to improve our ni –"
"QUI-GON JINN!" Sirren screamed at him and slapped his face one more time, leaving a bright redness on the Master's left cheek. "YOU SON OF A WHORESON BITCH!"
Is that a quote from Brokearm Planet? Obi-Wan was not surprised to find that the people around didn't even notice the outburst since Sirren had definitely weaved a mind-trick to keep them out of this before she slapped Qui-Gon's face this time.
Qui-Gon just stared at her, stunned: how could anyone ever be so crazy and say something uncivilized and humiliating like that?
He was even more stunned when he saw tears streaming down her cheeks.
"I –" Sirren choked, "I love you so much, Qui-Gon. But you keep cheating on me like that!" she wailed loudly.
"Cheating on her?" Obi-Wan stood up in a flash, "What's going on here, Master?"
Before Qui-Gon could say anything, Sirren glared at Obi-Wan and yelled furiously, "I'll tell you what's going on! Tonight Qui-Gon was having such a nice and wonderful time with ME, but then, you just popped out and his attitude changed considerably ever since! You know why? Because you're such a clingy little –"
Obi-Wan didn't hear the last word because Qui-Gon had blocked his ears with his hands in time. However, he could still recognize the movement of her lips and knew that the last word she screamed was "bitch".
Shaking his head emotionlessly, Obi-Wan put his Master's hands off his ears gently and said passively: "Honestly, Knight Esta, you don't need to be so angry, for I would leave even if you had retained your manner." He took a step away from her, and bowed, "I hope you would enjoy your dinner."
"Obi-Wan, wait!" Qui-Gon grasped the Padawan's shoulder to stop his movement, "This is all a mistake –"
Seeing Qui-Gon's painful expression at Obi-Wan's leaving, Sirren decided she couldn't stand it anymore. In only the time of a wink, she cupped Qui-Gon's face in her hands and kissed his lips hard.
Qui-Gon's eyes widened in horror, and Obi-Wan put his hand away from his shoulder and strode away with his hurt pride.
Qui-Gon immediately shoved Sirren away from him and ran to grab his leaving Padawan, "Obi-Wan, listen to me –"
Obi-Wan held up his hand and said quietly, tears glittering in his sad eyes: "You're right, Master – this is all a mistake." Then he extricated his arm from Qui-Gon's grip politely and walked away.
"Excuse me, sir. But your Oolurian Steak is ready to be served." The waiter returned with the dish.
Qui-Gon said absently, eyes still gazing at the heart-broken Padawan, "I'm not in the mood for this, young man."
The waiter frowned in puzzlement, then he shrugged and left with the dish. No wonder Tyym said this Jedi is a weirdo.
"What are you doing, Original? Go after him!"
Qui-Gon was startled to see #2 standing beside him, head hidden under the hood. "#2? What are you doing here?"
"That doesn't matter at the moment. And because you always said live in the moment," he mimicked Qui-Gon's tone ironically, "so there's no reason for you to know why I'm here."
"You mean we." Qui-Gon corrected coldly as he saw two other clones behind the pillar – #3 continuously muttering: "She French-kissed him! She French-kissed him!"
"Whatever. And 'French-kiss' is a kind of kissing style from a galaxy far, far away." #2 said dismissively, "I was saying you should go after your little girlfriend."
Qui-Gon quickly remembered what he'd been doing and when he was about to rush, he immediately bumped into Obi-Wan.
"Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon reached out to pull his Padawan from falling, "I thought you left?"
"But I heard #2's voice," Obi-Wan said seriously, "shouldn't he be staying in the Tem – Holy Force!" he exclaimed as he saw #1 and #3 smiling sheepishly behind the pillar. Before he could say more, Qui-Gon covered his mouth as the people around all turned around to see what happened.
"You think nothing has happened and will resume your dinners." Qui-Gon said to them, waving his hand a bit as he used the mind-trick.
As the people all turned away from them, Qui-Gon released Obi-Wan's mouth, "Next time, please control your volume, Padawan."
Nodding, Obi-Wan suddenly remembered that he was mad at Qui-Gon, so he turned his face away, not looking at his Master, "You know how I feel, Master?"
"Humiliated?" Qui-Gon answered in frustration – at least that was how he felt when Sirren called him those names.
Obi-Wan shook his head ruefully and whispered sadly, "Lied."
Qui-Gon sighed and grasped both of the Padawan's hands in his own, "Could you trust me on this, Obi-Wan? Like you always did before this incident?"
Obi-Wan looked down, and after a moment of hesitation, he nodded quietly.
Qui-Gon felt relief washed over him and he hugged Obi-Wan. #3 sighed happily at the sight: "It's so moving…this is called true love… Way to go, Gonny!"
"Uh, Qui-Gon?" #1 patted his arm nervously, "Could I tell you something?"
"Of course, #1."
"Well…uh…as you see…ahem…Knight Sirren Esta is here…because…"
"Because of you, Original." #2 said decisively.
"No!" #1 swallowed as he saw Qui-Gon's eyes narrowed, "Actually, she's here because she dragged me to this place…"
"Because she's crazily in love with you, Original." #2 added sardonically.
"Shut up, #2, I'm talking to #1." Qui-Gon said, turned back to the anxious #1, "And you're saying Knight Sirren Esta was previously staying with you?"
"Not exactly… She's been staying with #2 for a while, too…"
"So…" Qui-Gon rubbed his bearded chin, "that explains her maniacal behavior – Force, she's slapped me in the face TWICE tonight!"
"I-I'm really sorry, Qui-Gon, I didn't mean to!"
"I'm not complaining about you, #1, it's that Knight Sirren Esta – I'll talk to her former Master about this, she's insane!"
"But that's not entirely her fault, she thought she was really dating with you – Uh-oh…" #1's face suddenly went pale.
"What's wrong?" Qui-Gon looked at him in confusion, then he instinctively turned his head to see what made #1 so frightened. Then he began sweating immediately: Sirren had recovered from her shock of being shoved away by Qui-Gon and was heading for them!
#2 instantly pulled his already-raised hood further down in front of his face, and #1 just tucked his hands into his sleeves and both remained silent under their hoods. When #3 was just about to yell "It's that French-kissing lady!", #2 and #1 covered his mouth with fluster and dragged him to hide behind the tall plant behind the pillar.
Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan both turned around and stood with the perfect Jedi serenity to wait for Sirren's arrival.
Sirren stopped before them, her breath was a bit unsteady as she was very angry at the moment, but she still needed to get something clear: "Whom were you talking to?"
"It's not your place to question a Master, Knight Sirren Esta." Qui-Gon said sternly, putting his hands on his waist.
"Where did they go?" Sirren continued her asking as if she didn't hear him.
Rolling his eyes, Qui-Gon admitted that applying proper manner was not a useful method to shoo Sirren away. He must think of another way…but how? How…
Qui-Gon's eyes lightened up as he found a brilliant idea (well, at least he thought that was brilliant), "Knight Sirren Esta, allow me to introduce the three Magi from the East." As he spoke, he cast a meaningful glance to motion the three clones to step out from behind of the tall plant.
"Magi?" Sirren repeated bewilderedly, watching the three Jedi-hooded figures emerge.
"It's the plural form for Magus." Qui-Gon said calmly, "They are the three wise men."
"Never heard of them." Sirren just shrugged.
"Of course you didn't – they are from a galaxy far, far way…" Qui-Gon tried to make it sound mysterious.
"They even have Jedi robes." Sirren studied the three mysterious men skeptically, which made #1 winced a bit.
"Why can't they have Jedi robes?" Qui-Gon said in mock-relaxation, "They're from a galaxy far, far away after all, maybe Jedi robes are a kind of popular costume for them." Sweat began to form on his forehead.
Seeing his Master's dilemma, Obi-Wan decided to make some sense into the excuse, "After they arrived on Coruscant, my Master lent them his robes to keep them from the cold air of night, Knight Esta."
"No one asked you, Kenobi." Sirren said in open hostility, "I thought you said you were leaving?"
"Well, unfortunately, I've changed my mind." Obi-Wan answered coldly, "Now, if you will excuse them, our three friends here need to retire for the night." He bowed to them to signal them to leave. The three clones took the signal and went to make a detour to be back behind the plant without being noticed by Sirren.
Sirren felt anger swelled up inside her as she saw Obi-Wan acting like a very close friend to Qui-Gon, despite the fact that he was Qui-Gon's Padawan.
"Qui-Gon," she said pleadingly, giving the Master a plaintive look, "what about our dinner? And when will you explain to me why exactly your apprentice is here?"
"Well…" Qui-Gon stepped backwards, "It's a bit complicated… Why don't you just drop the subject and enjoy your night?"
"With you?" Sirren said, eyes sparkling with hope.
"Uh…" Qui-Gon swallowed, "Perhaps…"
"Oh, thank you, Qui-Gon! I knew you DO love me!"
Before she could embrace him, Qui-Gon stepped aside, avoiding the embrace, "Now why don't you go back to your little table first, and I'll be with you in just a minute." He coaxed.
"As you wish, my love…" she smiled tenderly and left, hips swaying deliberately.
After she was out of the sight, #2 stepped out from behind the plant, sneering, "My love?"
"Shut up, #2." Qui-Gon wiped his sweat on the forehead.
"But, Qui-Gon, you're really going to have dinner with her?" #1 said worriedly.
"Certainly not." Said Qui-Gon determinedly, "She's here and became so enraged because of you – well, not including you, #3, you're fine," noticing #3's guilty expression, he quickly added, "So it's definitely the two of you's responsibility to take care of her for the rest of the night."
"You want me to go back to that hell again?" #1 trembled violently at the thought, "But I guess I probably deserve that…" his shoulders slumped, and #3 patted his shoulder in comfort: "Come on, Steve, cheer up! Lanny will do it with you!"
"I'm NOT going." #2 said arrogantly.
"Sure you are." Qui-Gon said, eyes narrowed dangerously, his mouth twisted into a cold smile with menace, "Unless you'd like to spend the next several nights wondering if the crazy Original will shave your head while you're sleeping…" he touched his saber hilt threateningly, "Is that clear, Qui-Gon #2?"
#2 exhaled in annoyance, but he knew Qui-Gon was serious, so he responded reluctantly, "Transparently."
"Good." Qui-Gon nodded serenely and turned to the surprised Obi-Wan, "Shall we return to our table, Padawan?"
Obi-Wan was moved by Qui-Gon's determination to have dinner with him, instead of with Sirren, so he bowed his head, blushing slightly, "Thank you, Master."
Smiling, Qui-Gon took Obi-Wan's hand to lead him back to their date.
Watching the pair leaving, #2 snorted, "Love Birds…"
"Uh, I should be leaving now." #1 swallowed nervously, "But we must make sure that lady doesn't know Qui-Gon has clones, so if I failed again –"
"Whoa, hold on for a moment." #2 interrupted, "What do you mean by failed?"
"Um," #1 swallowed again, "I mean…if I failed to gather enough courage to remain at the table…"
"You don't mean you're very likely to run away for the second time, do you?"
"Well…it is a good thing that we'll do it together…"
"What! You want me to be your replacement when you escape again!"
"I suppose so." #1 implored, "Please, #2?"
Shaking his head impatiently, #2 sighed even more impatiently, "Oh, all right, I'm with you on this."
"Thank you, #2!" #1 was moved to tears.
"Hurray, Lanny!" #3 bounced in joy, "And when you wanna run away, I will be your replacement, too!"
"That's really kind of you, Junior." #2 said absently as he checked their target's status: Sirren was sitting at her side of the table, humming in anticipation and victory.
"Okay, #1," #2 paused a moment, waiting for the best time to act, "Go!"
#1 took a deep breath, lowered his hood, and walked towards Sirren, making efforts to look relaxed.
To be continued...
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