Chapter 16

Stopping outside of Master Arieh's quarters, Depa Billaba pressed the buzzer, then stepped back to wait. She was here to pick up Meri, who would be staying with the gentle Council Member while her Master was gone. His transport had had left for Dubh nán early that morning, and now, a few hours after sunrise, Depa knew Meri should be up.

Alex had approached Depa the afternoon before and asked if Meri could stay with her. Considering the circumstances surrounding the two, Depa realized how hard Meri was probably taking it, and how hard that was for Alex, who obviously adored his apprentice. She had agreed readily to keep Meri when Alex told her he was concerned about her staying alone. It had been awhile since she herself had an apprentice and the thought of a girl's night with the pretty, young woman was pleasant.

Frowning slightly, Depa leaned forward and pressed the buzzer again. All was silent within, and reaching out with the Force, Depa probed the inner quarters for any life force at all. The frown deepened, when after a careful search with the Force, Depa found no signs of life. Meri was not there.

Turning from the door, Depa moved quickly through the Jedi Temple, moving from one place to another. First the cafeteria, then the padawan recreational room, the training rooms, then the gardens. No one had heard or seen anything of Meri, not even Obi-Wan Kenobi, who was her best friend.

After several hours, in which Depa and a few padawan's she had recruited searched the Temple from top to bottom, the Council woman came to the conclusion she had been avoiding all along. Meri must have gone after her Master.

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Meri awoke with a start and for a moment, she forgot where she was. With a quick glance around she remembered, and sagged back against the box behind her. She shifted uncomfortably as her leg cramped, complaining from the tight confined space that she was sitting in. The cold floor beneath her was certainly not helping any.

Slowly she stretched her long legs out in front of her and winced at the soreness in the both of them. Cargo holds were definitely not made for comfort, and the small cubby hole she'd found to hide in, amongst all the boxes and goods was certainly not made for her long legs. Long ago had she left behind her height of 5'5 and now stood just a hair's breadth under 5'8.

As the cramping in her leg ceased, Meri had to refrain from sticking a finger under the hat she wore and scratching her scalp. It itched horribly and no wonder with the way she had to flatten down her hair just to get the hat on. Sighing, she looked around and wondered how long she'd slept. She really had no idea, but the deep hum beneath her told her that the transport was still in lightspeed.

There were a few problems she was facing at the moment, due to her reckless and quick plan. For one, she hadn't thought to bring any food or drink, and since she was in such a hurry, she had neglected to see how long the trip to this planet took. Secondly, and right at that minute more importantly....she had to go to the refresher.

As far as she knew, there was only one `fresher on the transport, and it was farther in the front. And that presented the greatest problem yet. Alex was up there. Back here in the Cargo hold she was using all her ability and training to shield from him, and the farther away she stayed, the better.

So, she tried to hold it. Ignoring her discomfort, she curled up on the floor and pulled the only Jedi clothing she'd brought with her, her Jedi robe, closer around her. She dozed on and off as the hours passed and at last she awoke, unable to hold it any longer. // I'm just going to have to risk it, // she thought with a wavering sigh.

Standing up, she cautiously peeked around before stepping out and heading for the door that would lead her to the `fresher. Praying to the Force she wouldn't be detected, she dampened her presence further, and slunk into the brightly lit hallway. A hallway that looked ever so long.

Quickly she tip toed down the length of the hall and jumped into the `fresher shutting the door behind her. After relieving herself she felt intensely better, but immediately dreaded the trip back.

Cracking open the door, she looked out. No one was in sight. Quickly she eased out and let the door shut behind her, then started walking swiftly down the hall. Looking up her heart almost stopped.

Alex was stepping out of the cargo hold and heading right for her. // Oh Force, let my disguise be enough, let it be enough, // she repeated the words like a mantra, and dipped her head as far as she could to hide her features. Her inner voice told her there was no way in hoth she was going to pull this off, but she had to try.

Without slackening her pace, she headed straight down the walkway. She could already feel his burning stare, and expected him at any moment to stop her. Yet he didn't. Closer and closer he came, until they passed each other and he went on by. She had just let out a quiet sigh of relief when the voice stopped her.

"Excuse me," the more than familiar voice asked.

Meri didn't turn around, but froze in step, her heart racing madly. // Sith, I'm in trouble. //

***

Alex rose gracefully out of the kneeling pose he had held for the past few hours and moved to stand thoughtfully in front of the window. He had learned long ago the only way to get rid of unsettled and turbulent emotions was to meditate and release them into the Force.

Yet during this session he had sensed something quite odd. A vision had flashed before his eyes of a young man hiding in a cargo hold. He hadn't seen the boy's face, only his backside, and now as he stretched out with the Force he felt something even stranger. When a Jedi cloaked themselves with the Force it created a void, so that when another Jedi attempted to find them all they sensed was that void. However, any highly trained Jedi could usually recognize what that void meant. If they were looking for it, that is. He wasn't exactly sure that was what he was sensing, but something inside told him to check out the ships cargo hold.

His search only revealed boxes of supplies, and though everything appeared normal, Alex was still unsettled. Slowly he moved around the small hold, his senses striving to find out what it was that seemed to be hiding from him. There was something...it was almost as though he was sensing a familiar presence.

He sighed and gave one last glance around, his blue eyes narrowing in concentration. Whatever it was he had sensed, it was gone now and Alex stepped out of the cargo hold to head back to the front.

As soon as he stepped onto the walkway, the figure walking towards him caught his eye. If Alex had simply gone off what the youth was wearing, he would have suspected it to be male, but long ago had he learned the old saying, "Appearances can be deceiving." The figure was certainly dressed in male clothing and sported a hat crammed so far down on their head he couldn't see their face. It was the way that the youth moved that first alerted him that not all was what it seemed, followed quickly by a stronger sense of that familiar presence. A biting suspicion began to grow, but disbelief tried to drown it out; yet, there was no mistaking the fact that the figure was not male. Just the way she walked...

// No...no, it can't be. //

But as much as he tried to deny it, there was no mistaking that easy, graceful walk. Just as he passed her, the bond he held with Meri jumped, and any doubts he still had fled. He turned quickly and watched her walk a few steps, a muscle in his jaw jumping as he clenched it. She had blatantly disobeyed him.

"Excuse me," he said in a tight controlled tone.

She stopped but didn't turn and he quickly stalked past her and then turned and faced her. He was looking at the top of a hat for she wouldn't look up.

Reaching out he tugged once on the hat, but it was tightly wedged. Giving it a tougher pull, it popped off and dark luxuriant hair spilled out from under it and fell to hang loosely just below the shoulders. Without saying a word he reached out and tipped her chin up.

Her dark eyes were full of apprehension and as his eyes danced over her features he felt his heart jump in his chest. It was followed immediately by a surge of anger as he realized how much danger she had put herself in.

"*What* do you think you're doing." His voice was cold and he allowed his hand to drop away from her face as he spoke.

"I--I had to come, Master...I...," she trailed off as his eyes darkened into a light lavender.

"How did you get on board," he demanded curtly.

Meri winced visibly at his icy tone. "I sneaked aboard and hid in the cargo hold before the ship left." She glanced up at him quickly and then added, "While they were loading supplies."

"Shavit, Meri! What were you thinking!"

She flinched at his harsh words, but before she could answer, he continued.

"And where, in the name of the Force did you get those clothes? Why are you dressed up as a boy?"

She glanced up at him cautiously. "I thought...maybe I could go in disguise as a boy," she almost asked.

He stared at her silently, the image of the way she walked dancing through his head. If it hadn't been so serious he would laugh at her suggestion. Anyone paying the least bit of attention would see that the way she moved was much too feminine for a male, and the loose clothing was hiding much more than a slender youth.

"That's an insane idea! You could never pass for a male."

"And why not?" she huffed, becoming slightly perturbed herself.

"Because you're..." he came to a sudden halt and she looked at him impatiently.

"Because why?!" she insisted.

"Because you're too b--," he began to say again, his tone only softening slightly from its hardness. "Because the way you move is anything but manly. You couldn't pass for a man moving like that," he quickly changed his words, trying to hide what he had almost just said

"You could teach me," she entreated, her dark eyes only flickering in response to his words.

"No," he said shortly. "Give me your sabre."

"Master?" she whispered brokenly.

"You heard me, Padawan. Give me your lightsabre," he repeated in an icy tone.

With tears shimmering in her eyes, Meri pulled out the concealed sabre and handed it to him. "Why?" she questioned haltingly.

"I can't trust you with it anymore, Meri." He couldn't bear to see the hurt look in her eyes and stubbornly he turned away from her. "I trusted you to obey me, Meri. Even in this."

"Are you going to take me back?"

He turned and glanced at her. "I can't. I would if I could, but I can't. The situation is too unsteady. Just what it doesn't need is a missing or late ambassador."

"I'm sorry, Master," she said softly.

His lavender colored eyes sparkled like jewels and his expression hardened.

"I wish I could believe you," he said coolly, than turned on his heel and stalked away down the hall.