A/N: As always, I apologize for the delay--I'm aware that this time it was quite possible to believe I was dead. I've just had other things to do over the summer (like hunting for small lost fish and consorting with despicable pirates and ogling red pandas. Ah, summer). To compensate, this is a ridiculously long chapter, which I had a great deal of fun writing. So thanks to anyone still reading this hunk o' junk, and enjoy. Please review! Pretty please!



Soundtrack: Crossed Swords from Pirates of the Caribbean, Coruscant Chase from Attack of the Clones. Savvy?



P.S. If there are any grammar errors, I apologize deeply. I tried to edit but somehow things always sneak through (falling blades of grass, birthday presidents, magical hot cocoa, you know). Feel free to point them out to me, nicely. I'm very sensitive.









TWELVE







The gymnasium was pitch black.



When Danielle closed the door softly behind her, the sound echoed throughout the vaulted room, dying away into the stifling padded walls. It was far past the hours that any of the other Jedi would use the facility, so silence hung like a shroud across the room, and every movement of hers was unnaturally loud in her ears. She could hear each light step of her booted feet, the faint swish of the heavy cloak she wore, and the soft, even sounds of her own breathing. For a moment she smiled as she always did to feel her breath coming easily and cleanly, without the wheezing or coughing that had once been so commonplace, then she reached the center of the room and her concentration returned to the matter at hand.



There was a familiar snap-hiss, and suddenly Danielle's skin was bathed with the eerie blue glow of the lightsaber she held confidently in her right hand. For a moment she simply stared at it, entranced, waving it back and forth before her face a few times and listening to its quiet hums as the arced laser cut through the inky blackness.



Shedding the heavy cloak and tossing it well out of her way, Danielle brought her heels together and saluted an imaginary opponent in three brusque motions. Then, the long-practiced movement coming naturally to her, she fell into the en garde stance, glowing blade extended and wrist angled to point the tip at the throat of an opponent.



For the length of five heartbeats, she held the pose, waiting, letting the Force flow into her and open her movements, her mind recalling the lessons of Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon. Then, acknowledging a silent instruction, she began to move.



Her motions were simple at first, her footwork unhesitating as she advanced and retreated, the arc of her blade shielding the majority of her body. Then, gradually, she began to add parries, wrist and arm sliding like a well-oiled machine to block an enemy's blows as she continued to move backward and forward. Despite the swiftness of her movements, she remained relaxed, focused, her shoulders held at a comfortable angle and her eyes unblinking. The brilliant glow of her saber drew lines of color across her vision as it flickered back in forth in the classic defenses, nearly blinding against the pervading darkness.



Satisfied with this phase of her activities, she extended her arm and dropped into a flawless lunge, the line of her shoulders straight as an arrow and her legs curved to drop her under an opponent's defense. Recovering, she made a few more parries and lunged again, lower still. Recovering forward, she made a step-lunge and held it for what seemed ages, until her legs trembled and a faint sheen of sweat glistened on her brow.



At last, she straightened, allowing her legs to relax and her arm to drop. Folding her arms, ever mindful of the deadly blade in her hand, she bowed; then, without hesitation, she flowed into movement again.



Her mind picturing a wily Sith opposing her, she feinted with a short thrust then dropped into a lunge, recovering only to make a low parry and riposte, thrusting again at a ghostly midsection. Whipping her blade in a circle, she attempted to disarm the other, then swirled to evade an answering lunge. Motions growing swifter still, she lunged even as she pivoted to avoid another strike, then slapped her blade fiercely against her adversary's to try and knock the weapon from his hands. She lunged, parried an imagined riposte, and lunged again, engaging her rival in lightning swordplay that ended when she swirled away, his measure taken.



The ghostly Sith was on her in a flash, and now Danielle stepped up the pace once more, making a high sweep towards the other's head and ducking under a returned blow. Twisting around, she slashed at her opponent's waste, then leapt nimbly over his answering lunge. A savage exchange of parries, too blindingly fast for an observer to follow, ended when Danielle heaved her blade upward, throwing her opponent off balance, and lanced out with a sharp kick aimed at the other's midsection. Fluidly, she pivoted around to follow the kick with another lunge that carried her low, under her adversary's riposte, then recovered in time to barely parry another lunge--



"You have learned much, young Skywalker, but you are not a Jedi yet."



Danielle shrieked, stumbling mid-lunge and nearly dropping her lightsaber. Whipping around, she stopped short when she saw her unexpected visitor. "KRISTA!"



The smaller girl grinned, the sheer evilness of the expression rivaling Danielle's own best wicked smile. "Well, hello, Danielle. I noticed you were missing from your bedroom and wondered where you'd have gone. After a little searching, I came here . . . and here you are, going all Matrix on me."



Danielle strode angrily toward the other girl and shook her lightsaber in her face. "Krista, did it ever occur to you that it might be a bad idea to sneak up on someone who's practicing fencing with A LIGHTSABER?!"



Krista blinked at her innocently, clearly unfazed. "But, Cello . . ." She reached within her dressing gown and drew forth a small cylinder. "I have a lightsaber, too." She grinned cheekily.



Danielle leapt back, suddenly wary again. "You . . . you have a lightsaber? Who on earth was stupid enough to give you one of those?"



Krista made a face. "No one gave one to me; around here, I am still just a ditzy handmaiden." She turned it on and admired its brilliant green glow. "This is Qui-Gon's."



Danielle felt faint. "You stole Qui-Gon's lightsaber? Gee, Krista, do you think he'll notice it's missing?"



Krista rolled her eyes. "I didn't steal it; I borrowed it. I'll put it back before he even realizes it's gone. But--hey. Where did you get yours?"



"This is mine," Danielle said icily. "Well . . . kindof mine. I'm borrowing it from the gym; they have several they keep around just as practice blades. I'm allowed to use it, unlike you."



"Allowed, shmallowed," Krista proclaimed, waving her hand. "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. I've come to help you practice."



Danielle just looked at her. "You've come to help me. Right."



Krista beamed. "I sure have. And from the looks of what I just witnessed, you really need the help." When she saw Danielle's brows begin to draw together, she added quickly, "I love you, Danielle."



"You only say that when you know it would get ugly if you didn't."



"True," Krista shrugged, still unperturbed. "You know I'm kidding, though, right? You were freaking awesome."



Danielle allowed herself to be placated. "I thought I wasn't a Jedi yet."



"Well, you're not. You're still young and weak. So . . ." With an evil look, she dropped into an obvious mockery of Danielle's en garde stance. "I challenge you to a duel!"



Danielle just stared at her. "You've got to be kidding me."



"No way am I kidding. Answer me these questions three ere the other side you see, errant knave!"



"You're insane. You do realize you're holding a real lightsaber? If one of us screwed up, we could lose a limb before we even noticed something was wrong."



"What?" Krista gave her a playful jab, making Danielle jump back again. "Buggering off, are ye, you pansy? You won't fight to defend God and your country and puppies and Christmas?"



When Krista made another swipe, laughing maniacally, Danielle had had enough. "All right! I'll fight you, just to wipe the floor with you like you deserve. You're practically begging for it."



"Bring it on!" Krista whooped, gathering up the skirt of her dressing gown in her other hand and baring her teeth at Danielle in a manic grin.



Danielle knew what she was doing well enough to keep them from getting hurt, so when she attacked she made certain she wouldn't actually strike Krista.



Thus, the battle engaged in earnest.



It was an obscene parody of Danielle's grace and professionalism, since both girls were giggling before the first blow even landed. Krista struck first, hacking wildly at Danielle, and Danielle parried easily, returning with a wild swing of her own that Krista dove to the ground to avoid. Danielle took advantage of this to kick her a few times, but when Krista regained her feet, she came at Danielle again with renewed determination.



"You're no match for a true Jedi, Handmaiden," Danielle taunted, waving her blade in front of Krista's face.



"I know it," Krista returned, grinning hugely.



Danielle picked up her cue. "Then why are you smiling?"



"Because I know something you don't know," Krista said smugly. Leaping backward, she transferred her lightsaber to her other hand with manic laughter. "I am not left-handed!"



Krista, choosing to wield her lightsaber like a baseball bat, took a wild swing at Danielle and lost her balance, spinning around dizzily in her own momentum. "Strike three, she's out!" Danielle laughed, swatting at her again.



Krista launched herself at Danielle with a high-pitched battle cry. "Die, Jedi scum!"



The doors slammed open.



Both girls whirled, astonished, twin cries of shock escaping their throats. For a moment, it was too dark to discern the figure standing in the doorway from such a distance; then he moved closer, and they both grimaced.



"Hey, Qui-Gon," Danielle said, morosely.



Krista 'eep'ed and tried, unsuccessfully, the appear nonchalant.



"Hello, girls," the Jedi Master said drily. "I don't suppose you would mind returning my lightsaber?"





*************************************** =) *************************************





Breakfast the next morning was uncharacteristically silent.



When Obi-Wan strolled in, totally oblivious, the two young women of the household were seated at the table, eating silently, while Qui-Gon seemed to stand guard near the doorway, glowering at both of them good-naturedly. Not noticing the tension in the air, Obi-Wan snagged an insta-heating breakfast packet, sat down, and tucked in.



"So," Qui-Gon said into the silence, his voice rather droll.



"A needle pulling thread," Krista muttered. Everyone stared at her for a moment, then decided to pretend she hadn't spoken.



"Today, we have lunch with the Nubian ladies again," Qui-Gon informed them. "I was planning on entertaining them here, but we are completely out of several things I need to prepare lunch. Danielle? Kristae?" When they looked up at him, he continued, "You two will go into town today and pick these things up."



"Alone?" Danielle said, worried.



"That's not a problem," Obi-Wan piped up. "I'll do it."



"No," Qui-Gon said firmly. "They'll do it. I think they need the distraction. As does a certain giant predatory cat who hasn't been getting enough exercise recently."



Obi-Wan glanced around the room warily, then sighed. "I missed something again, didn't I?"



"And," Qui-Gon continued, "I think it's time I gave Danielle this." Reaching behind him on the counter, he turned around and presented a small, wrapped package to Danielle. She looked at him curiously a moment, then accepted it, and made quick work of opening it.



Inside was a small, economical black cylinder. It fit perfectly in Danielle's grip.



She looked up at him, astonished. "This errand makes me need a lightsaber?"



Qui-Gon grinned faintly. "Not at all. But I observed you fencing with yon Handmaiden," he shot Krista a look, and she smiled sheepishly, "and you are now skilled enough to carry one. Henceforth, this lightsaber is yours. Traditionally you would construct your own, but . . ." He trailed off when he noticed the expression on her face. "What?"



"This is . . . my lightsaber?" Danielle asked slowly.



When Qui-Gon nodded, a smile as wicked as any Krista had ever given blossomed on her face. "I don't know what to say," she purred.



"I do," Obi-Wan said morosely. "God help us all."





********************************************************************************





In the Jedi Temple's hangar bay, the two girls stood for a few minutes, trying to find a speeder the proper size.



"Qui-Gon is insane," Danielle said abruptly. "We can't do this alone. I can't even fly any of these things."



"I can," Krista said brightly.



There was a little pause. "You," Danielle said slowly, "who didn't even get your driver's license until the end of your senior year, expect me to trust you to fly a STAR WARS SHIP?"



"Why not?" Krista asked cheerfully. "I was trained how to do it on Naboo. We handmaidens are resourceful like that."



Danielle considered protesting further, then realized that Sweetums, who was coming along for the ride, had cornered one of the hangar bay attendants and was growling very loudly. "All right, whatever! If we die, it's your fault. Sweetums!" she yelled, and the Nexu perked its ears up. "Come on, boy, we're going for a little ride."



After several minutes and not a few mishaps, the two girls got him into the back of the speeder and made it clear that he should stay there, then strapped themselves in. Checking to make sure the area was clear of any other speeders, Krista carefully maneuvered them out of the parking space, then turned and sped easily out of the hangar bay and into the open traffic.



Things just went downhill from there.



About five minutes into the trip Danielle's fingernails had sunk into the fabric upholstery of the seat so deeply they would leave permanent marks and Sweetums was yowling continuously from the back seat. Krista, however, was having the time of her life. "What's the matter with you guys? I'm doing fine."



"Fine?" Danielle squeaked, her voice shrill. "You call this fi--LOOK OUT!"



Krista saw the incoming ship as soon as Danielle shouted and, instead of swerving to the side to avoid it as a normal person would have, ducked their speeder under the other--bringing them directly into a lane of oncoming traffic.



Danielle's fingernails came free of the seat easily enough as she flung up her hands to cover her eyes, wailing, "My God, we're going to die!" Sweetums howled his agreement from the back seat, tail lashing wildly and nearly hitting Krista.



Krista was concentrating too hard to make any sort of reply. Ignoring the screams and rude gestures from the other traffic, she cut a hard right, arcing through space where no other ships were flying, turned into an upward spiral around a nearby skyscraper. At the top, she hit the accelerator and the speeder lurched forward, merging seamlessly with the traffic lane they'd been in to start with.



"You can open your eyes now," Krista informed Danielle conversationally. Slowly, still half-expecting to die at any moment, Danielle dropped her hands from her face and warily looked around her. They were, indeed, out of immediate mortal peril at the moment. "Oh," she said, her voice still very alarmed. "Oh, oh, oh, oh--"



"Danielle--stop it!" Krista reached over and smacked her. "You're hyperventilating!"



"KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD!"



Krista looked back in front of them in time to jerk the ship over a floating pylon and into the correct lane for their destination. "Danielle, calm down! We're fine!"



"No thanks to you," Danielle snapped, her breathing still unnaturally fast. "You--you--I am never getting into a moving vehicle with you again. EVER."



"How will you get home?" Krista inquired, following the brightly lit advertisements directing them to the nearby shopping district.



"I'LL fly, thank you very much."



"You don't know how!"



"I still can't be any worse than you!"



The speeder was tensely silent for a few minutes as Krista continued to navigate the space lanes. When she turned onto the exit led to the shopping district, she immediately slowed, looking around with dismay. None of the ships up ahead were moving. "It's a traffic jam," she remarked, surprised.



Danielle blinked. "How can there be a traffic jam when there's so much open space around us?"



Krista instantly perked up. "Look! There's an open section just there. I could lower us down, take us to the right a bit and then cut back into--"



"NO!"



Krista huffed, sitting back in her seat with a petulant pout on her face. "Fine, have it your way. We'll just sit here and be bored and get back late and tick Qui-Gon off some more."



"But we'll still be alive."



Krista pulled their speeder up into the thick of the traffic jam and stopped reluctantly. Soon they were hemmed in on all sides by surrounding ships, some close enough they could just reach out and touch them.



"Hey, look at that!" Krista exclaimed, pointing to Danielle's right. "Isn't that just the cutest thing you've ever seen?"



Danielle looked. In the ship next to theirs, the pilot, an elderly human woman, was cradling a small bright orange puffball in her lap and crooning to it lovingly. Danielle frowned. "That's funny. It looks kinda familiar." She stared for a moment, concentrating, then suddenly brightened with recognition. "I know! It's called a Balthaz. It's from the same planet as Sweetums; I looked it up when I was trying to find out what to feed him, because it's one of his natural prey--"



Danielle froze, suddenly realizing what she'd just said. Next to her, Krista also went stiff, the implications striking her as well.



After this, three things happened simultaneously. Krista bent her head forward and rested it against the steering wheel, sighing, "Oh, crap,"; Danielle turned around and lunged backward, yelling Sweetums' name; and Sweetums gave a very predatory yipping howl and lunged for the speeder next to theirs.



Chaos was too kind a word for what happened. The old lady gave an ear-splitting shriek (perfectly understandable, since a roaring monster was leaping at her in obvious attack mode) and burrowed under the seat, taking her puffball with her. Sweetums' leap carried clean into the other speeder--and, before she even had time to think about it, Danielle leapt to her feet and followed.



A very unpleasant ten minutes followed.



When they were over, the speeder was heading on its merry way to the grocery store.



Krista, still in awe, said, "I can't believe you mind-whammied those cops. Way to be a rebel, Danielle!"



Danielle, who was decidedly less happy with the situation, frowned more deeply. "I wouldn't have had to if you hadn't started yelling that they weren't real and so you didn't have to pay any fines to them."



Krista shrugged. "There was simply no call for Officer Wiggins to say I looked like a seventies fashion reject. Hey, wait a minute." She turned to stare at Danielle. "How would they even know what that means in Star Wars?"



They both thought about this a moment, then shrugged it off.



"At least they didn't charge you for the sniblit-thingummy," Krista added.



"Yeah. And Sweetums got off pretty lucky, too. Who'd have thought the old lady knew so much about martial arts?"



Krista pulled off the highway on the correct exit spaceway and flew leisurely into a local shopping district. "Hey, there it is. Weezie's Food World. Huh. Why don't you go in there and get what we need while I visit the music store?"



"No." Danielle's tone was firm. "I need your help in watching Sweetums. I think we've had enough excitement for one day."



"Please. I think we've had as much excitement today as is physically possible. I mean, come on; what else could possibly happen?"



This, of course, is never a wise question to ask, especially when one is trapped inside an alternate dimension containing telekinetic fish.



Krista parked the speeder with a decided lack of finesse and the three compatriots tumbled out unceremoniously. The first obstacle, revolving doors, provided a little difficulty for Sweetums, but some delicate maneuvering soon got the Nexu into the supermarket.



Inside, Danielle and Krista blinked at a store that remarkably resembled a drugstore back home on Earth, only ten times bigger and with merchandise that belonged in . . . well, Star Wars. To their left was the food, aisles and aisles of it stretching endlessly into the distance. To their right were the household products, most of which neither girl had the slightest idea what they were.



For a moment they stood in the entrance, listening to the Wookie Choir Muzak-equivalent howl over the intercom and watching the moving advertisements for various products wave frantically at them from the walls. They finally had to move when someone else wanted to get in, and Krista broke the silence. "Okay . . . what, exactly, do we need to get?"



Danielle squinted at her list. "It says here we need a six-pound vajinx, two cylinders brown fava sauce, one box Alderaanian stuffing mix, two packages heat-and-serve rolls, ten squickles still in the shell, a bottle of Merstian wine, a replacement roll of sticky-tape, a cannister of cenna-scented spray-oil, and a Grenetian hamster."



"A hamster?"



"I'm sure it's not the kind of hamster we're thinking of," Danielle assured her hastily. "All right, this will go faster if we split up. Here." Carefully, she ripped the list in half, and handed the lower half to Krista. "You take--"



"Oh, no! Don't you try and give me the hamster-half of the list!"



"All right, all right, trade me!" When they'd switched lists, Danielle huffed impatiently, "Okay, let's get those items and meet back here, then we'll go pay."



"Sounds good," Krista said. Squinting suspiciously at her list, she headed off at a brisk pace toward the back of the store, leaving Danielle and Sweetums standing together at the entrance.



"Okay . . . a Grenetian hamster." Danielle thought about this a moment, then spotted one of the store's employees, a young man approximately her age, walking past. "Hey! Excuse me! I have a question."



The man stopped, then smiled charmingly at Danielle as she trotted over. "Yes?"



"I was wondering if you could tell me what a Grenetian hamster is and where I could get one."



He gave her a slightly odd look. "A hamster is a type of serving spoon that allows pasta to drain; Grenetian is just one of the brands that makes it. It'd be over there, in appliances." He indicated one of the innumerable aisles to the right.



Danielle gave him a beaming smile. "Thanks," she chirped, then took off toward the place he'd indicated, only to stop when he yelped. "Hey! You can't have that--that thing in here!" he exclaimed, pointing accusingly at Sweetums. "And certainly not without a leash!"



Danielle frowned. "You think it obeys me? I just let it follow me around and hope no one irritates it. Why, just last week at the hardware store, this one clerk started yelling and before you knew it--" She made a gesture. "Chomp."



"What?"



Danielle hissed, "Shh! Lower your voice! Loud noise rouses its predatory instincts!" As the clerk paled in fear, Sweetums obligingly stared straight at him and began growling audibly.



"But . . . but you have to . . ."



"You want to take him outside? Be my guest." When the clerk made no move to do so, Danielle smiled cheerfully again. "Thanks for your help!" she said, breezing past him. She heard Sweetums give a playful little yip as he head-butted the guard behind her, then girl and monster took off toward the indicated aisle.



At the back of the store, Krista stared blankly at the endless shelves full of heat and serve rolls. There had to be at least eighty different varieties, and Qui-Gon had failed to specify which kind he wanted. Eventually, she closed her eyes, held out one hand, invoked the spirit of her father to guide her hand, and walked forward. The first package of rolls she bumped into went into her handbasket, and she cheerily checked the first item off of her list. Now for the Alderaanian stuffing mix. She looked around for a few minutes, waiting for inspiration to strike, before she just picked a direction and went that way. It had to eventually lead her to either a grocery-store worker or the stuffing mix, right?



Danielle, meanwhile, had acquired the hamster and now was examining the various cans of spray oil to find the cenna-scented variety. When she did, she sniffed it just for good measure and then spent the next three minutes sneezing as Sweetums butted her shoulder in concern. Much more warily, she placed the oil in her basket and checked the next item on her list: sticky-tape.



A few minutes later, she'd acquired the tape and, with some assisted growling from Sweetums, assured the clerk in the liquor department that she was indeed old enough to buy alcohol (she felt she'd already done enough mind-tricking for one day). Now for the still-in-shells squickles.



Figuring her best bet would be to ask for help, she headed for the nearby seafood counter and approached the young woman working there. "Excuse me?"



The young woman turned and stared at her expressionlessly. "Can I help you?"



Danielle frowned, squinting at her. "Do . . . do I know you?"



"No."



She glanced at the girl's nametag, which read, Hi, my name is Cynthia D., and I'm here to help you! "You're sure?"



"Yes."



Danielle shrugged it off. "Alright then. I wanted to know if you could tell me what a squickle is?"



"Edible crustacean from Malastare. Shell-less ones are behind the counter, still-shelled ones are in that tank right there." She indicated a mass of crawly, spidery-like creatures that scuttled at an amazing rate all over the inside of the tank.



Horrified, she asked, "They're still alive?"



"In the shell, yeah. Just grab yourself a bucket and put as many as you want in there. I can ring 'em up here, if you want."



Danielle looked at the bucket the girl proffered distastefully. "That's okay. Thanks."



"No problem," the dark-haired girl shrugged, then turned back to whatever she was doing before.



Danielle approached the tank of giant spiders with extreme wariness. "Qui-Gon, when I get home, you are going to be so dead," she muttered, thinking unkind thoughts about the Jedi Master. "Here goes nothing . . ." With a grimace, she rolled up one sleeve and stuck her hand into the tank.



A few minutes later, she'd collected all her squickles and was now trying to keep the bucket from squirming out of her grasp. She took the lid the girl offered her gratefully, but didn't get it on before one of the squickles launched itself out of the bucket and straight at her. She screeched, but before it reached her Sweetums thrust his head between them, and the squickle landed squarely in his mouth. There was a loud crunch!, and Sweetums gave Danielle a very satisfied grin as she scratched him and cooed what a very good boy he was. Making sure the clerk wasn't looking, she quickly grabbed another squickle from the tank and thrust it into the bucket, then slammed the lid on before any more could escape.



She started to walk back to the main door but stopped in front of the rest of the tanks containing various types of still-living edibles. She winced when she saw several fish that looked like Gumbi, and grinned at the species that followed her along the length of their tank, huge eyes locked onto her own. At last, she saw a huge tank filled with murky water so thick its occupants were impossible to make out. Peering in more closely, she was able to discern very little except the small sign on the tank which said, Please, do not tap on the glass.



It might as well have said, Please do not push the big red button. For a moment Danielle futilely resisted temptation, then succumbed. Reaching out, she gave the glass of the tank three distinct raps.



Before the Force had time to do more than shriek a warning a huge tentacle shot out of the top of the tank and wrapped itself around Danielle, pulling her kicking and screaming into the air. As Sweetums roared and leapt up, trying to free her, the tentacle pulled her down into the tank.



For a moment there was a great deal of chaos as Danielle thrashed and struggled, fighting both to free herself and to not inhale any water. She managed to get her lightsaber free only in time to remember that it didn't work underwater, and she gave a silent scream of fury. Lashing out with the Force, she kicked herself free of the monster's grasp and threw herself bodily from the tank.



Landing on the ground with a splat, she gasped as Sweetums sank his teeth into her cloak and dragged her backward along the floor, away from the writhing tentacles that thrust up from the tank, seeking to recapture their prey. Still gasping for air, she could only glare wordlessly as the girl behind the counter said, "Didn't you read the sign?"



******************************************************************************



Danielle had been at the appointed meeting place for nearly fifteen minutes when she began to grow concerned. At last, she said to Sweetums, "Hey, baby, track down Krista for me, will you?" With a whuffle of agreement, the Nexu sniffed the air for a moment then set off determinedly. Ignoring the stare of the clerk who'd accosted her earlier, she followed dutifully.



About five minutes later, she found herself in the darkest depths of the store, so far in she couldn't even see the entrance anymore. Beginning to grow slightly worried, she finally turned a corner and saw her friend standing in the middle of an aisle wringing her hands and staring around her wild-eyed.



When she caught sight of Danielle, Krista shrieked and launched herself forward, nearly knocking Danielle over with the force of her hug. "Danielle Danielle Danielle! You found me! Oh my God!"



Danielle finally managed to disentangle herself. "Yeah, finally. Krista, what have you been doing back here? What's taking so long?"



Krista's eyes darted around, looking anywhere but at Danielle. "I--I--well, it's a really really big grocery store, and I didn't ask where anything was--and then I got a little . . . turned around . . ."



"Oh my God." Danielle could feel a truly evil grin growing on her face. "You mean . . . you got lost?"



Krista's wordless glare was the only answer she need.



"Aww . . . poor baby! Well, then widdle Kwista, let's get you out of here, okay?"



Krista looked like she really wanted to flip her off but nobly suppressed it. "Okay, then, if it's so easy, you find your way out." She paused, just now noticing something, and frowned. "Danielle . . . why are you all wet?"



"I had a little run-in with the Watcher in the Water," she muttered. "After that, this should be a piece of cake. Come on," she ordered, striding purposefully back the way they'd come.



A few minutes later, they arrived: back in the very same aisle where she'd first found Krista.



"You've got to be kidding me."



"Ha! I told you it wasn't that easy!"



Danielle stared with horror at the near-thousands of varieties of canned shrellik fish. "It's . . . it's some kind of mind trick. Or a joke."



"I'm not laughing."



Danielle folded her arms. "All right. We're both grown women--well, mostly," she added, eyeing Krista. "And I'm a Jedi. I know we can find our way out of the grocery store."



"Yeah, Ms. Jedi. Go for it."



Giving her a superior look, Danielle strode off once more, and Krista followed, rolling her eyes.



In a few minutes, Danielle rounded a corner and shrieked when she saw herself staring into the buggy eyes of thousands of packages of shrellik fish. "I don't believe this!"



"You better believe it. What? Isn't there some sort of Jedi trick to get us out of here?"



Danielle thought intently for a minute, then closed her eyes, focusing on the nearest life form. When she had it locked in her mind, she said confidently, "Okay, I've got it! Follow me."



This time, their travels took them to a food counter, at which both girls nearly cried in relief. "Hallelujah," Krista said with feeling.



"Did you get everything on your list?" Danielle asked.



"Everything but the vajinx."



"I can 'elp you with that," a nearby voice said helpfully.



Both girls turned to see a very familiar man behind the corner smiling at them cheerfully. Krista instantly grinned. "Well, I just bet you can," she purred.



Ignoring her, Danielle stepped forward. "We'd like a six-pound vajinx, please."



"Not a problem." The young man opened the sliding glass doors of the display cabinet and selected a mammoth bird-like creature--thankfully not alive--and began pulling it out. "You guys having a big dinner party?"



"Something like that," Danielle agreed.



"You ever prepared vajinx before?"



"No, but I don't think we'll be the ones cooking it," Danielle said thoughtfully. Krista remained staring dreamily at the clerk, aloof from the conversation.



"Well, make sure your chef knows to marinate it for at least two hours," he said warningly. "It's a real rubbery bird, and if you don't cook it right, it tends to squeak when you bite into it."



"I squeak when you bite me, too," Krista said helpfully.



There was a little pause, then the conversation continued as though she hadn't spoken. "Thanks. I'll remember that," Danielle said, taking the now-wrapped bird from him.



"Any time. You ladies have a nice day." The clerk waved helpfully as the two departed, Danielle nearly having to drag an enraptured Krista away. "Danielle, did you see, that guy looked just like--"



"Yeah, Krista. I saw."





******************************************************************************





Checkout occurred happily without incident, and within a few minutes the girls were back in their speeder heading for home.



"Well, that was an adventure," Danielle said thoughtfully.



Krista, once again driving against Danielle's protests, nodded. "I understand now why Qui-Gon assigned it to us as punishment," she agreed. "But the nice-looking clerk wasn't so bad. And," she snickered, "at least I didn't get attacked by any of the food I was attempting to purchase."



It took her a while to notice Danielle was no longer paying attention. "Danielle? Hellooooo? Earth to Cello: do you copy?"



Danielle blinked and turned back to look at Krista. "What?"



"You're zoning out on me. What is it?"



Danielle gestured subtly behind them. "That black, covered speeder . . . I think it's following us."



Krista glanced at the indicated vehicle in her rear-view mirror equivalent and frowned. "Are you sure? This is a fairly popular skyway."



"Turn really suddenly," Danielle ordered.



As per orders, Krista turned the speeder rather sharply into an adjacent lane, cutting off several nearby vehicles. Just as Danielle had expected, the following vehicle did the same.



"You're right," Krista whispered. "What do we do?"



Danielle hesitated for a moment, fear and uncertainty warring in her mind. She had the Force on her side and she knew Krista had basic self-defense, but she doubted this was a situation they could handle on their own. "Head for the Jedi Temple," she said. "And step on it!"



Krista rammed her foot on the accelerator and the small speeder shot forward, slamming them back into their seats and making Sweetums yowl indignantly. Behind them, the black speeder also began to move faster, no longer trying to be subtle.



At first they wove through busy lanes of traffic, earning themselves all sorts of negative attention as they cut off other vehicles. Eventually Krista pulled sharply onto a nearly empty skyway, and the other speeder followed. After only a few minutes it became clear the others were gaining on them. "What now?" Krista yelled above the roar of the wind.



"Keep driving!" Danielle shouted, drawing her blaster. "We have to try and reach the Temple first. That's the only way--DUCK!"



Krista doubled over as a volley of blaster fire suddenly rained down on them. Danielle glanced above the seat and barely had time to see the two assault rifles sticking out of black tinted windows before more gunfire made her duck back down. For a moment she sat, panting, considering her options, then she began to move.



Krista saw her friend go into a sudden flurry of motion even as she tried to keep watching in front of them. Cursing aloud, she screamed, "Danielle, what are you doing?"



Danielle didn't answer. Ducking down, she scrabbled on the floor for her gun, then turned it on and resumed her crouch until it was fully warmed up. Swallowing her terror, she raised her head, bent low over the seat, and returned fire, aiming for the speeder's black-tinted windows. It was hard to get a good aim on anything as they careened crazily along, so few of her shots even came close to their mark, despite her best efforts. Her counterattack hardly seemed to phase their opponents: the quantity of shots increased if anything, and Krista yelped as one singed her sleeve.



Obviously, more drastic measures were needed. For a moment Danielle was too paralyzed to move, then something other than fear rushed through her veins and she remembered that she was training to be a Jedi, one of the fiercest warriors in the galaxy. Still holding the gun in one hand, she slowly stood up on the seat and took advantage of her uninhibited sight to fire mercilessly. When she took out one of the side windows, the pursuing speeder arced wildly, and she took the opportunity to drop the gun, then draw and ignite her lightsaber, holding it ready in front of her. Its hum was comforting in her hands, and the vivid blue glow spilled all around her.



"Danielle!"



"Keep driving!" she shouted.



The speeder had come back for another pass, but this time, when the shots began raining toward them, Danielle opened her mind to the Force. Almost of its own will, her lightsaber began moving, deflecting the shots back at the oncoming vehicle. A few got through her guard, but the majority she managed to safely ward off, enabling Krista to drive normally.



As the speeder was forced to draw back to avoid her deflected shots, Krista slowly began to pull ahead, gaining them more ground. For a moment, Danielle felt triumph rise in her throat--then she heard Krista cry out. "Danielle, get down!"



Danielle instantly leapt down into a sitting position--just in time, as a volley of bolts from the opposite direction shredded the air where she'd been a moment ago. "There's another one!" Krista screamed. "They came from the other way--they've cut us off--!"



As Krista's words dissolved into more enraged curses at their attackers, Danielle tried to figure out the best plan of action. She could deflect shots from one direction, but she lacked the skill to do it from two. Disengaging her saber, she pulled out her gun once more. "Go straight for the one ahead of us," she told a horrified Krista. "They're blocking our only exit. Act like you're going to ram them, then pull over them."



"Then what?" Krista yelled back, obviously skeptical.



Danielle closed her eyes and prayed. "You'll see."



Krista hit the accelerator once more as Danielle began firing directly at the speeder they now charged toward. Not expecting such a bold move, the enemy speeder slowed down warily, then came to a complete stop, continuing to fire on them.



Krista continued to aim straight at the other speeder, and it remained stoically in place. Dropping her gun, Danielle ducked as a blaster bolt went right over her head, then gripped her lightsaber firmly in hand and waited.



The speeder behind them pulled away as it seemed a collision was imminent. Danielle waited until what she knew to be the absolute last moment, then shouted, "NOW!"



She stood up again as Krista pulled up sharply, missing the other speeder so narrowly they almost grated against one another. In the brief moment that they were directly over the other, Danielle saw that this speeder had a wide, flat roof--then, without further preamble, she threw herself over the edge.



She barely registered Krista's scream of, "DANIELLE!" as she sailed through the air. Before her feet hit the roof her lightsaber was ignited in her hand, and as soon as the landed she swung downward, the metal immediately hissing and parting around the laser blade. She nearly lost her balance as the speeder jerked into life again, but another slash from her blade opened a hole into the speeder, and she slashed inside mercilessly.



The drivers inside screamed and ducked, so the blow merely bit into the steering equipment in front of them, searing deep into a control panel. Alarms instantly began flashing, and Danielle threw herself backward in time to deflect the shots coming from the other speeder, now bearing toward her at an alarming pace. They drew so close she could have reached out and slashed their windows as well, then passed her and had to turn around for another sweep.



As they were looping around, one of the men inside the speeder she stood on threw himself up through the hole, firing. Danielle danced back again, deflecting his shots, and he finally hesitated. She instantly seized the moment to knock the gun out of his hand with a roundhouse kick, and he scrambled backward. She menaced him with her lightsaber, but rather than submit to her he threw himself over the edge of the car, choosing to fall into the endless fathoms below.



Danielle heard the roar of an engine and knew the other speeder was almost in range again. If it and the remaining men in her speeder synchronized their efforts, she was toast. With one last parting blow at those still inside, she ran to the edge of the speeder, waited a moment, then threw herself off.



For an endless moment she was freefalling, then her boots slammed into her own speeder as Krista swung by on another pass, simultaneously driving and shooting at the windows.



Danielle disengaged her lightsaber and held on for dear life as Krista flung them forward, trying desperately to outrun the remaining enemy speeder. Danielle gathered her wits enough to return fire once more, but as they turned a corner she heard a high-pitched squealing, then a series of short explosions. "Krista, they've hit the engines!" she yelled.



"What do we do now?"



Danielle searched the area around them frantically, then pointed. "Fly us over that roof, and when I say so, jump!"



In the back, Sweetums roared, obviously displeased with this whole business, and Danielle managed to convey to him to follow her when she leapt. The engine whine growing louder still and the steering mechanism beginning to shake under Krista's hands, they arced desperately toward the sole low roof.



Danielle gathered her weapons and stood unsteadily, and Krista did the same. Maneuvering them as low as was safely possible, Krista instantly slammed the accelerator back to a crawl as Danielle shouted, "Now!" The two girls and the Nexu flung themselves from the still-moving vehicle onto the roof that was about six feet below the bottom of their speeder, hitting hard and rolling. The speeder, driver-less, crashed into the roof several dozen yards ahead of them, the engine exploding with a strangely anticlimactic tongue of flame.



Staggering to her feet, Danielle threw her lightsaber up in time to deflect a fierce volley from the remaining speeder as Krista, crouching behind her, grabbed Danielle's gun and fired back. When the speeder, instead of swerving away, continued to come straight at them, Krista cried, "Run!" and the three took off in the opposite direction, Danielle still deflecting over her shoulder as she ran and Krista pausing occasionally to fire another round.



The speeder ground to a stop, and suddenly a dozen black-clad figures spilled out, firing. Danielle and Krista exchanged horrified glances but kept running . . . only to realize that there was nowhere to run. Backed up against the edge of the building, they made a stand, Danielle guarding them as Krista tried to fire back.



Sweetums, unhappy at being left out of the fight, leapt into the fray with a roar, and Danielle used the minor chaos this caused to leap forward, lightsaber flashing as she attacked the men directly. She didn't want to kill any of them, so she aimed her blows as best she could to disarm or injure, and keep from having that happen to herself. Her blue blade flowed like a continuous stream of light, so quickly did she move it. Krista, far from merely watching, took advantage of the attention being focused on Danielle to fire with deadly accuracy into the crowd.



Things seemed to be going well enough until Sweetums gave a great cry of pain, reeling backward and yipping unhappily. "Sweetums!" Danielle screamed, her eyes flashing murderously; in the lull, Krista moaned, "Danielle, there's another one!"



Danielle resumed motion even more quickly than before, her eyes dark with rage, and hacked her way back to Krista's side. Gesturing for her friend to follow, she took off along the roof's edge, Sweetums limping painfully after them, as the third black speeder settled down on the roof.



Danielle ran as close as she could to the edge that connected to a nearby building as possible before they were cut off, and she swirled into these new opponents with sheer desperation. She heard Krista cry out behind her as her gun was shot from her hand, and Danielle realized dimly that the others weren't trying to kill them: they seemed to want them alive, and as unharmed as possible. She paused fighting to glance back at her friend, then realized in horror that they were completely surrounded. There was no way she could deflect from all sides.



For a moment they stood there, gasping for air and glaring daggers, before one of the black-clad and masked figures ordered, "Drop your weapon, Jedi!"



Danielle held its gaze for as long as possible, waiting for it to raise its weapon and threaten her; only then did she disengage and lower her blade.



"Remember: do not harm the girls!" another ordered. "Kill the beast and take their weapons, but do not hurt them!"



Danielle cried out as they raised their weapons to point at an injured Sweetums, thinking frantically what she could do to stop them--then, out of nowhere, there was the roar of an engine, and everyone turned in astonishment to see another speeder land on the roof beside them . . . and two brown-cloaked figures leapt from it, blue and green lightsabers engaged and humming.



Danielle nearly sobbed in relief as Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon swirled into the fray, effortlessly deflecting the enemy's fire. The black-clad men turned to face this new threat and Danielle called her lightsaber back to her hand, attacking them again and trying to lead them away from Krista and Sweetums. Despite her burnt hand, Krista dove for her gun and with a pained grimace began firing once more, trying to cover Danielle as best she could.



As fast and as graceful as Danielle was, Obi and Qui put her to shame. They sliced through the guards effortlessly, working side by side as an efficient and deadly team. She'd always known they were good, but to see them like this, eyes so fierce, their blows so swift and flawless . . . it made her feel astonished and strangely surreal to realize that she actually knew them, lived with them.



Now up against two more fully trained Jedi, the black-clad men soon found themselves outmatched, and it was their turn to flee. Within minutes there were only a handful of them left, and the four defenders backed them up against the edge of the building. "Hold!" Qui-Gon said, his voice fiercer than Danielle had ever heard it. "If you drop your weapons, we will see that you are unharmed."



The five remaining men exchanged pointed glances, then dropped their weapons. "This isn't over," one said darkly, looking at Danielle and Krista. "We will find you, and everything will be restored. It's only a matter of time before we send you where you belong!"



When Obi-Wan stepped forward threateningly, Danielle didn't even have time to shout a warning before they all threw themselves backward over the edge of the building.



The foursome ran forward to watch in astonishment as they plunged downward . . . but, before they dwindled out of sight, a pair of wings complete with jet-pack unfolded on each and every one, enabling them to maneuver to safety.



Danielle turned to face Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon and instantly found herself strangled. "You're all right!" Obi-Wan gasped, his arms like steel bands around her. "By the Force, you're all right! When we felt your distress, your fear, we thought we were too late--we were certain something terrible had already happened . . ."



Danielle returned his hug fiercely. "It would have, if you two hadn't shown up with such perfect timing." Obi-Wan released her, and she gave Qui-Gon the same fierce hug as Obi-Wan instantly moved to help Krista with her injured hand.



"Oh, little one," Qui-Gon murmured, holding her close, "you did so well. I was so terrified for you, but you fought like a true Jedi. I'm so glad I gave you that lightsaber--and I should never have sent you out alone, not after what happened the other night! I knew there was something going on! I blame myself entirely."



Danielle pulled free and looked at him in astonishment. "Don't be ridiculous, Qui. You couldn't have known. This was . . . this was unreal."



She glanced back at Krista, who had just allowed Obi-Wan to heal her hand and was now giving him a hug of thanks as well. Seeing her Nexu whining softly, she cried, "Sweetums!" and hurried to his side. Examining the black welts on him, she cried, "He's been shot . . . he needs medical attention!"



"I'll call an emergency vehicle immediately," Qui-Gon assured her, striding back toward his speeder.



"Who were those guys, Danielle?" Krista asked, cradling her newly healed hand and eyeing Obi-Wan with awe.



"We can always search their speeders," she indicated the two parked vehicles they had abandoned, "but I doubt they were stupid enough to leave anything inside to tell us who they were." Stroking Sweetums' head gently and cooing soothing phrases to him, she waited until the Nexu was making little yips of contentment before she turned again. "Did you recognize them at all, Obi-Wan?"



Hooking his lightsaber back onto his belt, he shook his head. "No. But they were very determined to capture you--you must have noticed they didn't want you killed."



"I did," Danielle agreed. "And they were very well prepared. We were lucky to last long enough for you two to get here."



"Not lucky," Krista said. "Skilled. Danielle . . . that was freaking amazing. You looked like a real Jedi out there, babe. I was proud to know you."



Danielle smiled at her in return. "Look who's talking. You'd think you've been the driver of a getaway car before, Krista."



Obi-Wan didn't seem to notice that Danielle was pronouncing Kristae's name strangely. "Whoever they were, and whatever they want from you, we will find them," he said firmly. "They won't be allowed to get away with this. But there's nothing we can do at the moment. We have to report to the Council."



********************************************************************************



The emergency vehicle had arrived for Sweetums and taken him away, gently but firmly refusing to allow Danielle to go with him. They'd given the speeders a perfunctory search, then decided the Council would be able to send a more thorough team later. Piling everyone into their speeder, they'd headed back to the Temple.



Upon arriving, however, they found the Temple to be in a great furor as well. In the main entrance, two very bedraggled Jedi that Danielle and Krista had never seen before were arguing loudly with a group of Masters. There was a great deal of arm-waving and yelling for Jedi, even between the two newcomers. Off to the side, carrying, of all things, a herd of balloons and what looked like cotton candy, was another girl, watching the proceedings with an insanely huge smile on her face.



Catching sight of the girl, Krista froze in place, causing Qui-Gon to run into her from behind. Danielle, listening to the argument, took a few minute to realize that Krista wasn't moving, but not why.



Ahead of them, the discussion continued unabated. "Things were going fine," the female Jedi was saying, "until we realized we were being pursued and had to lose them in a different sector. Our ship crashed in the middle of a fairground, and we spent four bloody hours being chased by a whole herd of Ixian's goons all over the haunted house, on rides, in the fairground--"



"All of which could have been avoided," the man cut her off with a drawl, "if any of us had the wits to realize we were only about five blocks from the Temple and could have made it here on foot if we so chose."



The girl chose this moment to butt in. "But that wouldn't have been nearly so much fun, would it?"



The sound of her voice caused Danielle's head to whip around sharply, and she stared at the girl in a blend of fascination and disbelief. She was wet, extremely filthy, dressed in strange robes, and suddenly possessing hair of an entirely new color, but there was no mistaking her. "Oh my God," Danielle breathed.



Krista managed to recover her wits first. Completely forgetting that Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon existed, she strode forward, Danielle hot on her heels, until they were only an arm's length from the girl, who remained oblivious to their presence.



After several minutes, Krista found the nerve to speak. "Annie?"



The girl turned, surprised, to look at them . . . and her jaw hit the floor. "K-krista?" she stammered. Glancing over Krista's shoulder, she wheezed, "Danielle?"



For a moment they all stared at each other. Then, without warning, they all moved simultaneously, and an incredibly messy and disorganized group hug ensued.



Amidst the babbling and incoherent rambles only a few sentences could be made out, but they soon pulled back, grinning insanely.



"I don't believe this," Annie said for probably the tenth time. "I thought that I was the only one here. You guys . . . you guys are here . . . wow. Well, here are all three of us--" She froze, suddenly going pale.



"What?" Danielle asked, surprised.



"Well, here are we three," Annie said. "But . . . weren't there four of us?"



For a moment no one spoke as the truth dawned on all of them. Then, when they did speak, it was at the same time.



"Where's Laura?"