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The three struggled against the howling wind. Hunching their shoulders and keeping their heads down to shield their faces from the sharp rain and frigid wind, they made slow and wet work.
By the time they reached Sarah's home, every inch of them was drenched, and Anakin felt a chill all the way to deep in his soul. Sarah struggled to close the door against the Herculean force of the wind. They stood for a moment, simply gathering their thoughts, and Anakin's mouth feel open.
Sarah was tall for her age, with an oval face and long dark blond hair. Her blue eyes stood out like two jewels in her face. In short, she was stunning.
As Sarah began to start a fire to warm them up, Obi-Wan looked around her apartment.
Her living quarters were small and cozy. It was cluttered with books and papers, and it had a truly comfortable feeling. It was far from being extravagant living, but Obi-Wan felt immediately at ease. The Force surrounded every object in this home, and it flowed into every corner.
Soon, there was a blazing fire, and the three had laid out their cloaks to dry and were warming up around the fire wrapped in blankets. The storm was continuing its furious assault on Roden outside, but here in this small and cozy living space, Obi-Wan felt content.
When the three were finally warm and had one of Sarah's hot and delicious meals in their stomachs, they settled back to talk.
"So," Obi-Wan inquired, "how long do you expect this storm to last?"
Sarah gave him an odd look. "On Roden, the storm can last months, a few weeks, or only a day. It is impossible to know." She looked at Obi-Wan again. "And can I ask you a question?"
"Certainly," Obi-Wan told her.
"What exactly are you two doing here? Roden isn't even a part of the Republic."
"We have been sent here on a mission by the Jedi Council. We were told that the operation called the Shadow League has been trying to spread discord among the people of Roden, telling of corrupt government, and simply trying to induce conflict." Obi-Wan studied Sarah's face, trying to find some sort of hint to their quest, but she revealed nothing.
"You won't find them," she replied. "In fact, I don't know where you got this information, but the Shadow League has not even been in action for months. The government had a peaceful government change months ago, and the Shadow League accomplished what they had been hoping for...an end to the corruption."
"How do you know this?" Obi-Wan asked.
"How do I know this?" Sarah replied incredulously. "How do I know this? How do I not know this? I am the Shadow League!"
"What?" Obi-Wan was immensely confused.
"I endlessly campaigned secretly for months. I trafficked in information for ages, and eventually, I managed to gain enough followers to successfully overthrow the corrupt leader. Democracy resumed. Which is why I have know idea why you are here right now. Roden has been at peace for months."
Then what in the Force's name are we doing here? Obi-Wan's confusion was deepening, when he realized a colossal truth. This is unbelievable. Could we really be here for...her? Could the Force really have brought us here? Obi-Wan decided not to say anything, he needed time to meditate on this.
"Look, you guys, I don't know why you are here, but Roden is at peace, and it seems that there has been some kind of mistake. All I know is that we don't need Jedi help. I suppose that you are free to leave, but I'm afraid that you'll have to wait. No one leaves Roden during the storm, it is to dangerous. I wouldn't even recommend going outside."
"Thank you Sarah, for your kindness. We gratefully accept your offer, and we are in debt to you."
"It's no problem, really. But I'm afraid that space is a little bit cramped. You and Anakin will have to stay out here in the main room, but the couch is comfortable, and I have some extra soft blankets for whoever ends up on the floor."
Anakin was trying to still absorb the whole situation when he spotted a broken comm transmitter in the corner. He immediately made towards it, pulling out is multitool as he walked and began to set to work repairing it.
He can never just sit still, Obi-Wan thought with an amused smile at his apprentice. Leaving Anakin absorbed in his work on the comm unit, Obi-Wan joined Sarah in the kitchen making a warm drink for them.
"Where are your parents, Sarah?" Obi-Wan's curiosity had gotten the better of him.
With her back to him, Obi-Wan saw Sarah stiffen. "My parents? My parents are..." She hesitated briefly, "gone." She finished. "They died a few years ago. Ever since then, I've just sort of been on my own. But I got a job at the bar, and I was able to buy this place."
"I'm so sorry," Obi-Wan told her.
"If it's all right, I would rather not talk about it."
"I apologize if I was inappropriate."
Sarah looked at him, "It's ok. Please, don't worry about it." Just then, the knife that she was using to chop some fruit slipped and cut a gash into her hand. She let out a gasp of pain.
Obi-Wan rushed over to her and inspected the cut. It did not seem to be too deep. He got out his medpac and wiped the wound clean and applied bacta. Sarah tried to object, "It's ok, really."
"Nonsense," Obi-Wan replied. "We don't want it to get infected."
"I think I have a bandage in my room. I'll be back." Sarah left the kitchen and Obi-Wan remained holding the bloody cloth. He felt as though he was back on the Naboo cruiser on Tatooine. I shouldn't. I am not Qui-Gon. I do not simply go against the council like he used to do...do I? Obi-Wan couldn't believe what he was about to do, but he pulled out his comlink and contacted a tech droid in the data center in the Jedi Temple.
When the tech picked up Obi-Wan's comm, Obi-Wan took a deep breath and said to the droid, "I need a midi-chlorian count of the blood sample that I am sending you."
"Right away Master Kenobi," the droid replied. Obi-Wan took a deep breath while he waited. He could not even believe what he was doing. "Master Kenobi? The midi-chlorian count of this sample registers at over 20,000."
Obi-Wan drew in a sharp breath. He could not believe it. "Thank you for your help," he told the droid, and he cut off the transmission.
Obi-Wan felt as though he was in a daze. This girl had a midi-chlorian count equal to Anakin. What could this mean? Obi-Wan could not make any sense of his confusion, and the rampant storm outside seemed to be clouding his thoughts even more.
Sarah returned then to the kitchen with a bandage on her hand and an armload of soft blankets which she handed to Obi-Wan. "It is getting late," she said.
"Indeed it is."
"I think that these will keep you and Anakin warm. I'm sorry that I don't have a better way of heating this place, but a central heating unit is a little bit out of my price range. I left extra wood by the fire so if you get cold during the night feel free."
"Thank you Sarah."
"It's been an interesting day. I think I'm going to get to bed now. And if either of you get hungry in the night, help yourself to anything I've got."
Obi-Wan allowed himself a small smile. When he had been a padawan, an offer to full freedom in the kitchen would have thrilled him. I was always hungry back then. "You're too kind Sarah."
"Good night Obi-Wan Kenobi." She smiled back and left the room.
-----------------------------------------------Just a quick A/N: Thank you guys for reviewing! I think that I've finally figured out where I want to take this story, and I'm pretty excited about it. Thanks again for reading!
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