A/N: Sorry, sorry, sorry! I am soo sorry it took me like forever to update. As I'm sure most of you can empathize with, I had to work extra hard on my school all last week so I could go see Revenge of the Sith. Which by the way, was the most completely awesome and craptacular ending to the Star Wars saga...ever:) Obi-Wan was incredible! Anyone who hasn't seen it yet, should drop everything their doing (well, drop everything after you read this chap;) and go see it. I'm sad it's over though. Haaa...well, I suppose it will always live on inside all us fans, huh? Okay, well...I'm gonna shut up now and let you read. Hope you enjoy this extra long chap!

Kenjigirl: Thank you, thank you very much. I'm glad you're still liken it:)

Relyan: I'm so happy you caught the humor of the last chapter. I'm trying to make it sorta humorous through all the characters different personalities, so I'm glad you were able to pick up on it. Thankx as always for the great review!

ZELINIA: Haha...you read my mind. I was thinking the exact same thing. Haha...'floating ball 'o fun'...I like that. Do you mind if I use it in the story? Oh cool, I'm glad you don't think Khyra's MS-ish. I'm really tired of seeing that like everywhere you look and I'm really trying to keep her away from it. Thankx much:) (By the way, an extra sorry for the long wait for an update to you since you asked to update soon...I'll try really hard to make sure it doesn't happen again:)

Ara Goddess of the Broken: Perfect? Really? Awww...that makes me feel good:) Thankx.

Dracula's Lair: Thankx so much, as always:) I hope you still like it.

JEDIKNIGHT32: Thankx for reviewing dude:) I'm happy you're enjoying it.

Chapter 5:
Of Midi-Chlorian's, Clumsy Friends, and Traitors

"When Zeru told me you had arrived, I had him find some clothes that might be your size just in case." Obi-Wan said after grabbing a small, neatly folded bundle of clothes from a closet in the common room. "I hope they fit alright." he continued; handing the clothes to Khyra, who was now standing near the couch.

"I'm sure they will do just fine, thanks." she said while graciously taking the clothes.

Gesturing down the hall, Obi-Wan nodded, "You can take the bedroom to the left. There's a fresher in the back, if you'd like to wash up as well."

Nodding a thanks, Khyra gracefully walked down the hall with a new-found balance into her room. After shutting the door behind her, she walked to the bed and sat down. Looking blankly at the foreign clothes resting in her lap, she smiled almost unknowingly. 'I wish you could be here grandda. I would give anything for you to know I found my way home.' Though he died nearly eight years before, deep within her heart, Khyra still mourned the loss of her Grandfather. He had always been so close to her. But now, he was gone...never to return to the world she knew.

'I'm gonna finish what you started, Grandda. I don't know much about my...what is he? Great Uncle? But I do know one thing...' she stopped her thought for a moment as she began to untie the laces of her black boots. 'He has to be stopped as soon as possible. I don't know how I'll do it, but for you, Grandda, I promise I'll stop him.' With her silent vow completed, Khyra removed her boots and made her way to the fresher; clothes in hand and confidence in heart.

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"Soo..." Zeru drawled out from his seat on the couch. "What do you think of her?"

Obi-Wan looked up from his hand-held computer (called a 'data-pad') and lifted a curious brow. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean." Zeru replied smugly.

"She seems very nice…and Master Yoda was right about her being strong in the force."

"You like her, don't you?" deciding to 'cut to the chase', Zeru got right to his point.

Obi-Wan looked back down to his data-pad to hide his shy smile. "You know the rules of the Jedi just as well as I do. I can't like her. It's against the Code." referring to a law stated in the Jedi Code where a Jedi is forbid to be attached or flirt, Obi-Wan spoke.

"Bah!" Zeru swatted playfully at the air. "Give yourself a break, will ya, Obi? That's all I hear from you these days. Becoming a Master's changed you, bro."

"It has not." Obi-Wan tried to defend himself of his stiff behavior. "I'm the same Obi-Wan I always was."

Zeru snorted jokingly. "Yeah, sure...whatever."

Obi-Wan could tell this was turning into another one of those conversations he would never win. But just as a quick-witted reply appeared in his thoughts, he sensed Khyra's presence enter the room. 'For someone being raced through a world she's never known, Khyrana sure is calm.'

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"Now that's much better!" Zeru began enthusiastically at seeing Khyra's appearance. She wore a somewhat 'modern' Jedi outfit worn by few female Jedi's of the time. Her chest and stomach were covered by a loose, black sleeveless tunic and beige undershirt that reached past the black and down her arms to the base of her hands. Beginning at a simple black belt at her waist, the black tunic formed a short covering of her hips and continued to create a straight, centered covering spanning thigh to thigh to her knees. Covering her legs was a pair of beige pants matching that of her undershirt. And on top of it all was a flowing black robe like that of the other Jedi's, only cut for a woman at the waist and shoulders. The only thing different from the norm in their galaxy was the pair of Earthly black boots covering the lower half of her pants; high-healed and tied with a black fabric string, laced from toe to top at her knee.

"I have to admit...it is comfortable. Kind of difficult to figure out how to tie the thing though." Khyra replied with a smile; referring to the complex way to properly tie the Jedi tunic.

"It's very fitting." Obi-Wan said with a curt smile before returning to his data-pad.

Zeru expected Obi-Wan to say something more, but when he did not, he decided to break the silence filling the room. "Well, I imagine everyone's getting hungry," he paused for a moment and soon continued at Khyra's friendly nod. "So I guess I'll get started on some dinner." At that, Zeru turned on his heels and made his way to the kitchen off to the side of the common room.

She hadn't thought of it before, but at the mention food, Khyra's stomach began to growl from the way it had been neglected in the days of late. 'Aww...hungry. Why did he have to mention food?' Deciding it wasn't a particularly good idea to dwell more on the thought of food, Khyra thought to change the subject running through her mind.

"So, Obi-Wan..." she began; taking a seat in a chair across from the preoccupied Jedi. "Where are we going again?"

Obi-Wan looked up and smiled. "A planet on the outskirts of the Galactic Republic called Mybis. I have a friend there that has inside information we'll need to make it to Sylo. Here..." he paused and handed Khyra his data-pad over a small table. "This has all you need to know about our mission and some more information on Sylo. Just touch the arrow on the bottom right to scroll through."

Khyra stood from her seat and took the data-pad. "Thanks."

The two shared an uneasy silence for quite a long time. Obi-Wan sat cross-legged on the couch with eyes closed and hands crossed under the cover of his robe's long sleeves. He was searching—that even Khyra could tell. For what, she didn't know, but as she sat in her chair, she could feel unseen eyes searching the air around her. At first, she tried not to pay any mind, but as the feeling grew, so did her curiosity. "What are you doing?" she asked him respectfully.

Obi-Wan opened his eyes and held back the smile begging to shine through at the sight of the girl's inquiring expression. "Meditating." he knew the one-word answer was not enough, as her expression remained unchanged. "As Jedi, we must remain 'one' with the Force. Meditating allows us to clear our minds of any uncertain thoughts and draw power from the Force."

"Oh..." Khyra replied before asking another question. "So, you and Zeru are both Jedi's?"

This time Obi-Wan did not attempt to contain his peaceful smile. "No. I am, but Zeru is not."

"So...is he one of those 'padawan's' I've heard about?"

"No." Obi-Wan shook his head slightly. "A padawan learner is someone who is an apprentice training to become a Jedi. Zeru is more a...friend and partner than anything."

"Ohh..." Khyra responded again; trying to act as if she understood. "So, why isn't he a Jedi?"

Obi-Wan took in a deep breath and tried to think of an easy way to explain. "Because he is not strong in the Force. See, for one to be a Jedi, they must have a fairly high count of microscopic life forms called 'midi-chlorian's' in their bloodstream that allow them to draw power from the Force. Unlike you and I, Zeru does not have a strong amount of them."

"Whoa...wait a minute." Khyra's tone picked up a little volume. "You mean to tell me that I've got little...things inside me!"

Obi-Wan tried to hide the amusement from his voice. "Yes..." he began calmly. "But don't worry. They're not dangerous in any way."

The two both felt the uneasy aura around Khyra slowly fade away. "Oh, good." she sighed.

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A lighter silence soon fell its way over the two after some time. It had been nearly an hour since Zeru had begun dinner, and Khyra was really starting to feel hungry. In that very moment, the resounding sound of the crash filled the rooms of the ship. Khyra jumped inside herself and looked up from the data-pad to Obi-Wan; still sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed and hands crossed. Only now, he bowed his head and shook it grievously.

"What was that?" Khyra asked.

Even though he tried to conceal it, Khyra still heard Obi-Wan's heavy sigh. "Zeru..." he said; his tone somewhat of a mix of annoyance and amusement.

"Dinner's ready!" the happy-go-lucky voice of Zeru echoed through from the kitchen to common room.

Khyra set the data-pad on the table in front of her and smiled at Obi-Wan with a curiously raised brow. "Don't mind him. He has a bit of a bad habit of being very clumsy." Obi-Wan laughed in speaking of his best friend.

"Yeah...I gathered that." she laughed softly before standing. "Well, shall we eat? I'm starved!"

Following her cue, Obi-Wan stood. "I'll bet you are."

With Obi-Wan in the lead, Khyra followed to a somewhat small eating room connected to a compact kitchen. Inside, Zeru had neatly set a table for three and was presently fumbling around with a large pot, pan, and what appeared to be a glass of a milk of some kind. Obi-Wan gestured for Khyra to sit at the table as he attempted to help his blunderous little friend.

Without saying a word, Obi-Wan gracefully balanced the pot and pan in his grip and gently lowered them to a nearby counter in one swift step.

Zeru sighed gratefully and set the liquid-filled glass on the table. "Thanks Obi-Wan. Guess I couldn't hold everything at once, huh?"

Obi-Wan smiled as he easily picked up three food-filled plates from the counter; balancing two in his grip and the other along his forearm. "It's all in your balance Zee. Don't focus on what you're holding, but instead focus on the center of the object in your hands." with a smile of delight still mingling over his lips, Obi-Wan set down a plate in front of Khyra and the seats where he and Zeru would sit.

After watching the two men sit, Khyra focused her attention to the plate in front of her. On it was yet another thing she had never seen before. Something that appeared to be a meat laid across one side, with the other covered in a mix of very colorful objects. She was skeptical to taste the foreign food, but picked up her utensil nonetheless; not wanting to seem disrespectful.

Sensing her hesitant feelings, Obi-Wan thought it best to explain the food that was quite normal to him. "It won't bite." he began with a smile that still managed to send an odd chill up Khyra's spine. "This one," he continued, pointing to the colorful plant-like objects on his own plate, "is a very popular fruit. It's called Zukee. Go ahead..." Khyra believed him, but after a few bad experiences on Earth with trying unusual foods, she was still quite wary. "It's really quite good, and every part of it's edible, I assure you."

Both Obi-Wan and Zeru could tell Khyra was still skeptical, so they decided to convince her by example. "See?" asked Zeru after picking up the orange and green striped fruit with his fingers and taking a bite. "It's good."

Nodding in understanding, Khyra took her fork-like utensil and tried a piece of the fruit. 'Wow...' she thought, 'tastes kinda like a mix between a raspberry and blueberry.'

"Good?" inquired Obi-Wan.

Taking another mouthful bite of the alien fruit, Khyra smiled and nodded contently.

"See...told you so." Zeru smiled from across the table. "You'll probably like the meat too. It's from a beast called Nipoo. Imported all the way from the Outer Rim. One of my favorites!"

Khyra took the knife beside her plate and cut off a small piece of the strange brown meat. Obi-Wan smiled at the unheard sigh of happiness surrounding her. "It's very good..." Khyra said after swallowing her food. "Actually, it's quite familiar to a meat back on Earth called 'alligator.'"

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After listening and laughing (so much so that Khyra once found out what it was like to have tea come out her noise from laughing too hard) to a few of Zeru's famous jokes and rumors about some of the Jedi Masters, dinner was done, and the three found themselves relaxing against their chairs for a moment.

"Ahh...that was fun." Khyra began through a dying giggle. "I need that laugh. You're quite funny Zeru."

Over the many years Obi-Wan knew Zeru, he could tell even when he was the slightest bit nervous or embarrassed. If there was any time he thought Zeru could have been blushing, it was right then. "Aww...thanks Khyra. I like making people laugh." Zeru's voice was the same as it had been, only, it quivered in an almost, almost inaudible way.

Almost as sudden as a light bulb lighting over his head with an idea, Zeru decided to change the subject a bit. "So...how'd you end up here anyway? Like, what made you come here?"

Khyra lazily settled a little more into her chair and silently stared into her glass of tea for a moment. "It's kind of a long story." she said simply; an unknown tone hidden within her smooth voice.

"Well that's good, 'cause we've got plenty of time." Zeru replied accurately as Obi-Wan remained silent at the end of the table.

"Alright," she began. "Well, I guess it all started a couple days ago now. I was meeting an old friend of mine named Jack Traver at a restaurant." Obi-Wan could sense her tense both visibly and invisibly at the mention of this 'old friend'. There was anger behind her words. "I met up with him and after getting reacquainted, he asked me for my help. Basically, he needed money...bad." Khyra paused for a moment as if scanning her memory for the correct details. "Of course, him, being a trusted friend of mine, I was eager to help him. So, even though it was quite a large sum of money," about four thousand American dollars, "I decided to give it to him. He was extremely gracious and promised to pay me back." pausing again, she focused her attention on some interesting spot on her tea-glass and snickered softly. "I should have known something was wrong right then. I don't know why I was so stupid, but oh well...what happened, happened, I suppose."

"And what did happen?" Zeru inquired impatiently.

"Well, do you have problems with illegal drug dealers in your galaxy?"

"Yes. Quite a large one, actually." the long silent Obi-Wan finally decided to add to the conversation.

"You should understand this then." Khyra again continued with her story. "After talking with him for a little while longer, I left Jack's company and got on with my life normally. But, the next day, I woke up to find a very threatening note posted to my morning newspaper. Well, thinking it was just some joke by the neighborhood kids, I really didn't think too much of it. Everything was normal until early afternoon...I think it was. To make a very long story shorter, my old friend betrayed me and set me up to take the fall for a major drug deal he was setting up. Before I knew it, I was being chased all over my town by police, our version of 'peacekeepers' you could say. I had no where to go and no one to turn to. So, I did what I was told to when I was younger. I went home." pausing to take a breath, Khyra took her time in taking a sip of her Coruscantian tea.

"I took the quickest transportation to my home country called Ireland. In an old museum my Grandda founded is where I found the teleporter. I grew up with him warning me never to go in the vault it was hidden in unless my very life was at stake." with her free hand, she lightly grasped the old key still strung on its chain around her neck. "Using this key, I entered the vault and found the teleporter. You pretty much know the rest."

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'She's been through a lot.' Obi-Wan stated to himself; watching the mixed feelings of relief and sadness grow over his new friend's soft features.

"Quite a story you got there." Zeru said; shooing the awkward silence hovering like a black cloud over the table.

"Yeah..." Khyra started quietly before 'perking up' to the innocent self Zeru and Obi-Wan had come to know. "It's funny though. I'm not mad at Jack for ruining my life on Earth, 'cause if he never did, I may never have found the teleporter."

"That saddens you?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Well, yeah...I guess it does. Maybe it's 'cause my family's from here, but for some reason, I feel so much more at home here then I ever felt on Earth. Its like, all these years, I've been searching for a place to belong; thinking that maybe there's something else out there...something just for me. And now, here I am. As the Jedi would say, it was the will of the Force, I suppose."

Obi-Wan smiled at her growing knowledge of the Force and Jedi over such a short period of time. "Yes it was. After all, without you, winning this war would become extremely complicated...if not impossible."

Khyra nodded as she took another sip of her tea. "So, what are your stories?"

"Ohhh..." Obi-Wan sighed with an edge of laughter in his voice. "Now there's a very long story."

"Well that's good, 'cause we've still got plenty of time." Khyra replied, almost perfectly mimicking Zeru's earlier statement.

"Hmm...kay well, let's move into the common room. This chair is killing my back." Zeru whined, pressing his hand against his back; trying helplessly to get it to crack.

A/N: Whew...that was definitely a very long chapter. Well, hope you all enjoyed! Next up: Training. Later!