Miri had no idea why she had suddenly become nervous on her way back to Obi-Wan's, and now her own, hut on the outskirts of the Dune Sea. She held onto his tunic, and ran her hands lovingly along his waist for support. Her heart pounded when she thought that everything she did was now her own choice. She no longer had to question how it would look, or what her father, or anyone else would think. Only Obi-Wan, and she knew he could never judge her.

They reached their hut, and without a word, Obi-Wan powered down his hover bike and helped Miri down. She could sense how serious he was at the moment, and upon probing his feelings further, she discovered their origin. It made her stomach tie in knots as Obi-Wan took her by the hand and led her with distinct purpose into the inside of the hut.

Once they were indoors, and the door was sealed behind them, Obi-Wan drew Miri into his arms with urgency. Placing his hands in her hair, he angled her face towards his, and kissed her deeply, his freshly trimmed beard tickling her chin. Caught off her guard, Miri was at Obi-Wan's mercy, and returned his kiss lovingly. When he broke their kiss, Obi-Wan looked into Miri's eyes.

"You've made me the happiest man in the galaxy." His blue eyes softened when he gazed into hers. She touched his beard gently with her fingers, smoothing it down.

Miri shifted against Obi-Wan, feeling his hardness under his tunic and pants. She smiled huskily. "It's not the only thing I've made you," she said, her words purred into his ear as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, continuing to press against him.

"You're right," he said, dryly. "It's not."

With another breath, Miri pulled away from Obi-Wan, giving them some space. She studied him for a moment, and then smiled as she began to undo his belt, making sure to place his lightsaber safely on the table before returning to her work. With his belt off, Miri had ready access to his tunic, which she tugged and pulled over Obi-Wan's head. She placed a few light kisses on his exposed chest, and hooked her fingers into the waistband of his pants. Taking the cue, Obi-Wan divested himself of the rest of his clothing, and stood before his wife adoringly.

He slowly reached for the shoulders of her dress, and before he had a chance to touch the garment, Miri stopped his hands. She walked him back towards his bed, a mischievous glint in her eyes. She shook her head, and directed Obi-Wan to sit. With a smile and a breathy chuckle, Obi-Wan complied and watched as Miri backed up a few paces.

With enough room between the two of them, Miri would then be able to undress so that he could see all of her. Undoing the top few buttons in the back of her dress, Miri was able to pull it off her shoulders, where it pooled at her feet.

Obi-Wan's heart ached at the sight of his beautiful, young wife. She stepped out of her dress, and came within a foot of Obi-Wan. She reached out and ran one hand through his hair. He closed his eyes in contentment. He opened them after a moment, and gazed at her. She was smiling, doting on him.

"I almost can't look at you for too long," he ventured.

Miri's eyes narrowed in confusion. She smiled and cocked her head to the side.

"You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in the galaxy, I mean."

Miri's stomach flipped again. "I should think that a Jedi Master such as yourself has seen quite a few wonders. I hardly believe you are completely serious. Though I know you want to b—"

Miri did not get a chance to finish her sentence before Obi-Wan reached a hand out and pulled her atop him so she straddled his lap. With her lips a breath from his, he whispered to her. "And a Jedi Master would not lie." With that, he placed his hands gently in her hair at the top of her neck, and gripped it lightly. Eagerly, Miri answered the gesture by kissing him, and steadied herself by holding onto his shoulders for support.

Breaking their kiss, Miri watched Obi-Wan's eyes as she lowered herself gingerly onto him. Obi-Wan's eyes closed in silent pleasure as he felt all of himself inside her. Miri smiled to herself as she watched what power she had over him. After a moment of adjustment, Miri began to move her hips. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, using them for support. Obi-Wan grabbed her hips, guiding her the way he wanted her.

Before their senses overtook them, Miri kissed Obi-Wan's neck, and whimpered into his ear. "I love you."


"You must allow the force to flow through you, Miri. You must never hesitate."

"I'm trying, Obi-Wan," Miri said, frustrated at the speed, or lack thereof, that she was progressing in her lightsaber training. Moving objects through the force seemed to be completely easy for her, but Miri struggled with combat skills. Having spent the majority of her adolescence behind books, she was never as fit as she should have been.

"One of my former Masters would tell me, 'Do or do not, there is no try,'" Obi-Wan said, bringing his blue lightsaber blade back up at the defense position.

"But what if I hurt you?" Miri said, lowering her violet blade to her side. The Tatooine suns beat down on her exposed shoulders, causing beads of sweat to trickle down her back and pool at the base of her spine.

"You're not going to hurt me, Miri," Obi-Wan assured her. "I have years of experience and practice, I promise you won't hurt me."

"See, that's what I'm talking about, what's the point? I'm too far behind, I can't learn this."

Obi-Wan heaved a sigh, and powered down his blade before he closed the gap between him and his wife. "Darling, you can't help that. I only meant that if you're afraid of hurting me, I can defend myself. But this is not about whether or not I can defend myself. This is about you. You doubt yourself too much. You must let go of your fear. And I've told you what fear can do to a Jedi," he added, his words weighted in meaning.

Miri huffed, and paused a moment. "Alright." She raised her blade once more, and took a few paces back from Obi-Wan. Pleased at her perseverance, Obi-Wan powered his lightsaber back up, and readied for Miri's attack.

And this was how their days went. They would start the day with making necessary repairs to the moisture farm equipment, making sure that their harvest was on schedule. Then, after this was done, they would train in the craggy hills behind his hut, where they might avoid any observation from unannounced guests.

And in the evenings, they would make dinner together, and make love. It was difficult for Obi-Wan to keep himself from pulling her into bed while they were working. But his patience was always rewarded in the evening, after which they would fall asleep in each other's arms and repeat the whole process the next day.

It was the most happy Obi-Wan had ever felt in his life. His sorrows had been many, his losses too great to count. But Miri made all of that pain shrink away until it was merely a shadow of what it once was.

Miri and Obi-Wan primarily stayed out of Mos Eisley, but occasionally they would have to return to town for supplies. This always made Miri's father happy. It seemed that everyone was happy with how things were turning out. Everyone, save for Bastien.

Bastien had not taken his layoff well. He accepted his termination well enough from Lee to his face, but on his own, Bastien's hate for the Gorsa family was cemented. He had agreed to an apprenticeship thinking that he would get full control of a business and a wife out of the whole deal.

Now, he felt yet again cheated out of what he felt he was owed. And he was determined to get what he wanted.

The business that Lee Gorsa lost was not great. Bastien had set up shop far enough away from Lee's stand that the loss was barely felt.

Bastien had chosen his location very strategically. He had taken an empty stall by the bookshop that Miri had so often frequented before she married Ben Kenobi. And it was this habit that Bastien had hoped she would resume. Bastien was soon not disappointed.


Four weeks had passed since Miri and Obi-Wan had married, and still she felt like she was walking on air. It was on one particular morning that Miri would be shaken from her dreamy state.

It had been far too long since she had been to her favorite shop in Mos Eisley. Months. Ready for a new tome, having read the Twileki poetry book twice over, Miri was in search of new reading. She had no idea that there were a pair of eyes watching her as she entered the book shop, intent on finding her new reading.

As she scanned the shelves, she thought of what a naïve girl she had been when she dragged Obi-Wan here those months ago. She had been so forward. But she would have done it all over again, just the same way, if she knew it would lead her to such a happy life.

Bastien had slipped into the bookshop without so much as an upward glance from the bookshop owner, who had his aging eyes trained on a thick Corellian volume. He stood two paces behind Miri when he spoke.

"Congratulations on your marriage. Curiously short engagement," he said coldly.

Miri whirled around in surprise, clutching her new book. When she registered who it was, her eyes narrowed in disgust. Still, she forced herself to soften her demeanor. She sighed, and thanked him.

"Thank you. How is your new business?" she asked, reluctantly.

His face displayed a smugness that Miri had grown to loathe. "Fine, very fine. I had the best mentor a man could dream of." His green eyes burned with a fire that sent Miri's senses off. Still, she was determined to walk out of the bookshop without any trouble. She approached the front counter, and placed her money in front of the shop keeper, and turned to Bastien without worrying about her change.

"I wish you all the best. Have a nice day." She forced herself to say the words, though there was not much conviction behind them. With a nod, she spun on her heels and walked out the door.

Still, he trailed her like a wild vornskr stalking its prey. Miri turned and looked Bastien in the eye. "Good day, Bastien." She kept walking, out of the thoroughfare where Bastien's stall and the bookshop were. She was only a few blocks from her father's stall, where Obi-Wan and Lee would be waiting for her.

She wouldn't make it that far before Bastien had her cornered.

"I think you and I need to have a few words, don't you, Miri?"

She turned, and tried to put on an air of passivity. "What might we have to talk about, Bastien?"

He stepped a few paces closer to her, towering over her. She backed away, but soon ran out of alley before she was backed into a corner. Her fear and anger were growing too loud for her liking.

"Oh, just a few words we might have exchanged about a month back," he added, casually.

"Oh, you mean about the girls? The girls you tried to blackmail into a marriage with you? It's Mos Eisley, Bastien, things like that don't stay buried for long."

"That wasn't all," he hinted. "No, you knew things."

"I'm an intuitive woman," she said, deciding it was time to leave the alley behind. Before she got two steps, a strong pair of hands grabbed each of her upper arms, and spun her around, backing her against one of the synstone walls. Instantly, Miri's mind flickered to Abraxas, the Zabrak henchman of Jabba the Hutt, and his repeated abuse of her. Her heartbeat quickened, but determined to defend herself, Miri breathed deliberately to calm herself.

She knew exactly his intent. She could see it in his mind, feel the evil like fungus growing up a wall. It sickened her. He wanted one thing, and if she were any other person, he might have succeeded. But instead, Miri lifted her hand and shoved Bastien backwards using the Force. She could see the shock in his eyes. She knew he didn't feel her hands on him. So, in a final effort to distract him, Miri closed a fist and punched him as hard as she could across the cheek.

"If you ever touch me like that again, I swear you will never be physically capable of attacking another woman in your lifetime." Not waiting for a response, Miri turned and ran for her father's stall.

Obi-Wan had immediately gone looking for Bastien but could not find him. It was growing dark, and Obi-Wan did not want them caught driving out to the Dune Sea in the black of night. Still, Obi-Wan hoped deep down that Bastien would not continue to be a problem for them. His feelings told him that before too long, something would have to be done about him, otherwise Luke and Miri's safety would be at risk.


The welt had started to form on his cheek as he drank his fifth glass of Vaschean rye, deep in the belly of Mos Eisley cantina. He held the glass to his face with futility, hoping that the swelling and bruising might not be so bad, but he would be mistaken.

He would have gone home to lick his wounds if it weren't for one group of miscreants who slithered into the cantina, laughing raucously. His mind, though dulled by the alcohol, surely put the pieces together, and he remembered who they were.

Jabba the Hutt's men. The Zabrak, the humans, and even the Twilek. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Bastien scraped his stool back as he stood. As the men sat, Bastien reached their table. They took a moment to size him up, their hands resting on their blasters.

"Speak or be on your way," Abraxas warned.

Bastien's mouth curled in a sick half smile. "I'd like to talk to you about a mutual friend."


AN: And I'm back! The school year is almost over, and my teaching duties with it. Since instruction is now essentially preparation for finals, I have had quite a bit of time to write, so I hope you like what I have planned soon. Hope you all have been doing well. Thanks again for reviews, comments, follows and favorites!