Author's note: Thanks to chord and charm-school dropout for helping me in this and the next chapter. Thanks to the Star Wars books I own, which I took some information from.

By the way, I was really sleepy when I made this, so there might be some typos, and it might not sound so…nice. And one topic may go to another and back again. So…sorry!

I woke up to the sound of Master Anakin's voice. "We have to leave her, Artoo, she's still asleep."

I jumped up. "Not anymore. You aren't leaving me." I started to fix myself up.

Master Anakin sighed impatiently. "You don't understand, Lunaris. I have to leave you here. But I promise I'll be back."

I clipped my lightsaber to my belt. "I don't understand because you aren't explaining anything to me. And where's Tahiri?" I hadn't noticed her absence until I saw the space beside Master Anakin was clear of a yellow-haired head.

"That's why you wouldn't understand." He pushed a small button on Artoo's side, and a three-dimensional holographic form of Tahiri appeared (A/N: Think Princess Leia in A New Hope).

"Anakin," Tahiri's voice was tinny over Artoo's small speakers. "I'm going to find the Yuuzhan Vong base and get inside. I'll try to get whatever information I can about how much the Yuuzhan Vong have already gotten from the mausoleum, if any. I do have a lead; the whole base surrounds the entrance to the mausoleum; no doubt they'd want to know what's inside. I'll also try to know the layout and the grounds of the base itself, plus where the main controls are and who are the supreme officers and all in the base. I'll be putting the information on my wrist comm and I'll be sending it to Artoo everyday. But you can't send anything to me unless I enter a password on my wrist comm, so don't even try to discourage me through holographic messages, Solo." She smiled. "I've almost been transformed into a Yuuzhan Vong when I was captured before, and I still remember how to speak and communicate with them without a tizowrym, which makes me the best person for the job. I'll just pretend to be a slave prisoner. Don't worry about me, Solo; just find the base and then help me. If you're listening, Lunaris, please take care of Anakin. Don't let him out of your sight, now." Tahiri then vanished.

"I perfectly understand everything she said, but I don't understand why you have to leave me." I folded my arms across my chest.

"Because she's my best friend, 'Ris. I have to go after her."

"And leave me here? Are you taking for granted that I'm your apprentice? Just because I'm not her best friend gives me no right to go along with you and help you? I'm going with you anyway whether you like it or not." I hoisted my knapsack onto my back. "Lead the way."

"You can't come with me, 'Ris. It's too dangerous. And too risky. And you're still not prepared."

I narrowed my eyes and looked at him straight in the eye. "You underestimate me too much, Master Solo. You don't know how much more "dangerous" and "risky" were the missions I've been to before, even before I was your apprentice. And furthermore, the reason why I'm not "prepared" is entirely your fault. You don't teach me well enough if you think I'm not "prepared". Why else would you bring me on this mission anyway if I weren't prepared? Aren't I here to learn?"

Master Anakin sighed and threw up his arms in exasperation. "I give up! You're coming with me." With that, he strode off into the forest.

I leaned down to Artoo's height. "One point for me." Artoo just beeped and rolled away.

Anakin stomped ahead, not caring whether Lunaris was behind him or not. She had hit a spot, and she hit it hard.

It was true that she wasn't prepared because it was his fault. He hadn't been training her as hard as he was supposed to, and she still had too much to learn. But it wasn't his fault she had such a sharp mind—and tongue—so he didn't blame her for anything and kept his mouth shut instead.

As soon as he looked up from his thinking, he faced a large mountain he didn't recall seeing the day before. "Artoo," he called over his shoulder. "How will you get up the mountain?" He certainly wasn't in the mood to carry the droid on his back.

Artoo tweeped a reply and a pair of booster rockets emerged from his cylindrical body.

"Great. Go on ahead to the top and see if there's a flat spot there we can rest." Artoo complied, and shot off to the top.

Lunaris caught up to him. "How are we getting up there?"

Anakin pulled out a rope from his rucksack. "With this." He tied one end of the rope to his body and started to climb up the mountain.

"What? No Force? I thought the Force was a tool," she said, tying the other end of the rope around her waist and following his lead.

"It's a tool I'd love to use to untie this rope from my waist and let you plummet down to your death," he muttered.

"What?" Lunaris said from below.

"Err…" Even her hearing was sharp, he thought. "Nothing! I just said that it's a tool because...because...we Jedi can use it!" Lame excuse, Solo, but she doesn't have to know that. As long as she shuts up.

Sweat poured down his face, and his tunic stuck to his back, but he kept going on. Tatooine's twin suns seemed to be melting them, and the heat was unbearable, but finally, Anakin, reached the top. R2-D2 was waiting for him, resting underneath a shade provided by the mountain's rock formation. Exhausted, he absent-mindedly untied the rope around his waist.

"Master Anakin!" Lunaris' voice echoed from below. "Why did you let go of the rope?!"

Vaping moffs! He scrambled to catch the end of the rope from falling off the edge in vain. He peered over the edge to see his apprentice dangling helplessly from a protruding rock. He could see fear written on her face.

"Grab my hand!" he yelled to her, and extended his hand as far as he could. I'll take back all the nasty things I said and thought, but please let her live.

Lunaris made a feeble attempt to seize his hand. "I can't!" she shouted back. "You're too far!"

Anakin tried to lean out further. "If I lean out anymore than I am now, I'll fall over the edge!"

Lunaris was silent. "Well, this is the end, is it? It's the end of the line for me. Sorry for saying all those mean and nasty things. You were a good Master to me." And she let go of the rock.

"Lunaris!" He could jump down after her, just like he did when she was falling off her balcony, but the altitude of the mountain was too high. He wasn't that strong in the Force. He might as well die along with her. No. Not until we've found Tahiri.

Instead, he reached out and closed his eyes. He imagined her being pulled up, back to him, through the Force. Come on, come on…within seconds, he felt a firm grasp on his hand. Without pausing to think, he pulled her back up using the Force and felt a sudden weight land on his body. He hugged her tight and kissed her on the forehead. Thank the Maker. She's safe.

"Err…Master? I-I'm fine," she stammered. She was taken aback at this sudden form of affection.

She was surprised even more when he didn't let go.  

She almost thought it would be the end of her.

It was nighttime, and she was sleeping beside him. At least, she was supposed to; she couldn't sleep. She just stared at his face, watching him as he slept, trying to get lulled by his deep and steady breathing. In the background, she could hear a few beeps emitted by the astromech droid as it was on standby mode.

After her near-death experience, he refused to let her out of his sight. He didn't want her to go to one side of the cliff by herself because she could easily be pushed by the wind and blown right off the edge. He didn't want her to go off to a corner by herself to meditate, because something bad could happen to her. When she asked him what could possibly happen to her in a small corner, he reddened and told her to stop being so impertinent.

She felt a slight tug on her hand. Even in his sleep, he didn't want he wandering off, so he held her hand as he slept.

She didn't know what to make out of his over-protectiveness for her. Sometimes she was worried, that she'd be spoiled and over dependent on him because of that. Sometimes she felt strangled, since there were a lot of things she couldn't do.

Sometimes, though, she felt really lucky. If he was overprotective of her, it showed that he loved her and cared for her. It was something she had never experienced in the few but traumatizing years she had with her father.

She brought her hand up to his face and gently traced out his features; there were no sharp corners or flawing blemishes. Her fingers ran smoothly along his profile. She inhaled his scent; a mixture of the soap he often used, and the subtle whiff of the oil he applied on his hair. Clean, yet intoxicating.

Tenderly, so he wouldn't wake up, she placed her hand on his cheek and stroked it. The simple beauty that radiated from him awed her.

She couldn't believe that this man was her Master, to whom she owed her whole life. She greatly admired his skills as a Jedi Knight, and someday wished she could be like him. It was said that he could be the next most powerful Jedi in the galaxy, and she was proud that the man they often talked about was her Master.

She felt so out of place, yet right as if she belonged there. She didn't want to have to sleep beside him, in the belief that she would be rid of her dreams if he stayed beside her. She felt like she was being treated like a child that way; but she felt as if she was meant to be...treated that way. That she had to be protected from her own dreams, from things in her head that could be real.

That was one of the things she loved about him: his gentle, caring nature, which made her feel loved and accepted, a far cry from how she was treated when she still lived with her father.

Her eyes followed her fingers, which had then traveled to his arms, toughened and muscled through years of lightsaber practice and combat. She closed her eyes and imagined what it would be like to be held by them. Instantly, she felt enveloped in the Force, and calmness spread through their bodies. She felt a strong sense of security, and she felt as though he had already rid her of her nightmares, even as he slept.

She gave a tiny squeak that ended her small daydream, and his eyelids fluttered open. "You still can't sleep?" he asked her quietly.

"I'm afraid of what I might see," she whispered. She lowered her gaze, ashamed.

"My moonchild…" he murmured, and gripped her hand tighter. He brushed away strands of black hair that had strayed to her face. "I'm sorry," he said. "I can't get rid of your dreams."

"It isn't your fault," she said softly. "Fate is cruel to me."

"Fate isn't to me," he said. "It brought me to you, so I could protect you, and take care of you, and teach you things." And love you, he almost added.

She smiled sadly at him and closed her eyes. "I don't want to wake up alone. Don't leave me."

He pulled her close to him, as if afraid she would suddenly be taken away from him. "I won't."