Disclaimer: George Lucas owns Star Wars

A Shift in the Force: Fated Meeting

AN: Only one review for the last chapter! Sad face! I better get at least two for this one, you numpties!


Sabé was still fast asleep when her comlink buzzed, and the last thing she wanted to do was move and grab it. Still, she reached out a hand aimlessly, almost knocking it to the floor as she searched for it.

"Amidala," she said fuzzily, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Master!" Talik's voice was positively bubbly, her words coming in a bit slurred in her excitement so that Sabé couldn't understand a word she was saying.

"Slow down, Tali," Sabé said in a patient voice, sitting up on the medical bed and feeling pleased that now her stomach was only stiff and sore, "I can't understand you when you're this excited."

"Anakin won the podrace!" Talik said, her voice still holding its previous excitement, "Master Jinn is having it brought to the ship!"

The sleep left Sabé as she swung over the side of the bed, making the cloak that had been thrown across her during the night fall to rest on her knees. She stared at it in a bit of confusion. Obviously it wasn't hers; it was too light for her tastes. Obi-Wan, the Force whispered.

Her fists clenched slightly in the fabric as a healthy bit of color rose in her cheeks.

"How soon?" she asked, directing her attention to the comlink once more.

"We'll be back within the hour!" Talik chirped.

"I'll let the pilot know."

She switched off her comlink, and clipped it to her belt once more, looping Obi-Wan's spare robes over her arm as she made her way out of the room, bumping into the young man in question she had been intending on looking for.

"Obi-Wan!" She managed not to blush in spite of the fact that she was holding his cloak in her arms. "Um, this is yours." She practically flung it at the older young man, but he took it in good grace, maybe because he was too busy to do anything different.

"Thank you," he said politely as she came walk beside him. "You look much better. Are you all healed?"

"A little sore, but much better from yesterday," Sabé agreed. "I am very much looking forward to sleeping in my bed."

Obi-Wan laughed outright at that comment. "Aren't we all?"

"Looking forward to sleeping in my bed?" Sabé said, her lips quirked. "No. Is there something you want to tell me about, my friend?"

The completely embarrassed expression on his face was so utterly comical that Sabé had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing. She took a moment to watch her old friend splutter and flail in the water that he was now drowning in, before deciding to rescue the poor man. "Don't worry, I know what you mean."

Obi-Wan coughed slightly in an effort to hide his embarrassment, but he wasn't very successful.

"I never got around to asking you," Sabé said suddenly, dragging him rather suddenly from the uncomfortable moment, "how was Mandalore?"

She was of course referring to his extended mission with Qui-Gon on the planet Mandalore, protecting the young Duchess Satine Kryze. Obi-Wan had hardly mentioned it at all, which was rather unlike him; Padawans always exchanged what came to be known as 'war stories'.

"It was fine."

That caught her attention and she arched an eyebrow, her curiosity coming back in full. "Just fine? That doesn't sound much like you."

"Just leave it," he requested with a slight plead in his voice, "please?"

Sabé eyed him suspiciously for a moment but she conceded, because she could feel his shame about the whole matter, how his faithfulness to the Order wavered for the second time.

"Ah," she said lowly, "I see."

"Do you?" he asked in an almost mournful voice. This would mark the third time his heart had been stolen by a female, and the thought made him understandably miserable.

Sabé felt ashamed that she had not noticed the change in her friend earlier, for it was clear that the matter had been something that had been plaguing his mind for quite some time, and then embarrassed by her own affection towards the Jedi Padawan, but it hardly seemed like something that she could help herself doing.

"You were in close contact with the Duchess for close to a year," Sabé said slowly, choosing her words with care and hoping that she wouldn't upset him too greatly, "its understandable that…feelings developed between the two of you." But what really pained her was that he couldn't see her even though she was right there, beside him, like she had always been. She was nothing like Siri Tachi, that much she could be certain of, but she had to admit, they did have…certain similarities. Both were determined and capable, though Sabé's mindset allowed her to adapt to working with more than one person, while Siri preferred to work alone. Siri was more headstrong, while Sabé was more patient. There could be no two people who were so different yet so the same.

"Did that ever happen to you?" he asked her, noticing how lost in thought she had just become.

"I never really had the opportunity," she admitted, "none of the missions I went one involved protecting a male for an extended amount of time, and besides, it would never have been an issue if I had."

That piqued his curiosity. "Why's that?"

"I am a Jedi first and foremost," Sabé said in a diplomatic manner, "though I do listen to my heart, I do not think that I would fall in love with a simple man. They would have to have complexity and understand my devotion to the Order."

"What man would?" Obi-Wan asked her, his eyebrows melting together, conveying his confusion.

A Jedi would, Sabé thought to herself, but she did not voice the words, she would never voice those words, especially not to him. It would take a great deal to get her to profess her true feelings, and she did not anticipate that happening anytime soon.

"A great man," Sabé said with assurance, her eyes meeting his for a moment, and Obi-Wan caught sight of something much deeper flickering in her luminescent chestnut orbs, but a second later it was gone, "if he could see it."

Obi-Wan thought about opening his mouth to ask her something else, but he thought against it and they stood in silence waiting outside to greet Qui-Gon, Talik, Padmé, and Jar Jar as they rode up on eopies, which were creatures native only to Tatooine. Sabé remembered them from the time of her assignment to the planet; they were very good at pulling around heavy loads.

Talik practically flew to her master, throwing her arms around her and hugging her fiercely. Obi-Wan was more impressed by Sabé's ability to not fall over from the force of the hug, and then a little wistful, because the way the pair acted sometimes, you would think that they were mother and daughter.

"I see you have everything we need, Master Jinn," Sabé said, nodding to the bulky package that was being pulled by a rider-less eopie. "I'll have it installed right away."

She squeezed Obi-Wan's upper arm lightly before she lifted the new hyperdrive into the air with hardly a blink, disappearing into the ship with Talik following closely behind and Padmé watching the display in fascination.

"I'm going back…some unfinished business," Qui-Gon said, drawing his attention away from the new hyperdrive. "I won't be long."

Obi-Wan's eye twitched slightly. "Why do I sense we've picked up another pathetic life form?"

"It's the boy who's responsible for getting those parts," Qui-Gon said, nodding in the direction that Sabé had left. "Get the hyperdrive generator installed."

"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan agreed, giving a small bob of the head. "It shouldn't take long."

He waited until he could no longer see Qui-Gon, and then he reentered the ship to assist his friend who it seemed was well underway with the replacing of the generator.

"I thought your sister's name was Padmé, though," Talik was saying as she eyed Padmé who sat watching silently, "she's not your sister."

"Kriff!" Sabé muttered as her hand slipped and banged against the machine. "Obi-Wan can you do me a favor and get this screw, I think it's stuck."

"No problem." Obi-Wan took her place as she shook out her hand.

"Talik, Padmé is a popular name on Naboo, just because she has the same name as my sister, doesn't mean that she is my sister," Sabé said carefully, for which Padmé seemed grateful, but Obi-Wan couldn't exactly tell why. He thought about reading her for a second, but the look on Sabé's face shut him down in an instant. Clearly there was something about the girl that she didn't want to talk about.

"Later, Obi-Wan," she warned, "focus on the present, where it is due."

The rebuke surprised him. She hardly ever pulled rank on him, and usually only when she was annoyed, making him wonder what he had done to annoy her in the first place.


Sabé almost fell over when the ship lifted off rather suddenly, but Talik bypassed her and tumbled gracelessly to the ground.

"What the-?"

"Cockpit!" Sabé barked. "Talik, strap yourself in!"

"Master!" Talik complained.

"Do as I say!" the Nabooan female ordered as she raced past her until she was in the cockpit. "What in the name of sanity is going on?!"

But no one had time to give her a response as the spacecraft hovered above the ground, near where the sand was being kicked up, not being able to hide the green and red blades as they flashed against one another.

Sabé founded her breath catching in her throat. She recognized those black Sith tattoos patterned across his red flesh with the upraised horns through his cranium. The mysterious Zabrak that had attacked her in her youth (not to say that she wasn't still young), the one that had cut her arm clean off.

"Yours is the name of a child destined for darkness."She remembered those words very clearly; it was almost as if they had spoken to her the day before. Though, she had to admit, those words had been plaguing her mind for years.

Qui-Gon leapt up and onto the landing, and the Zabrak's eyes met hers briefly, but long enough for her to feel a flare of pain across her arm where his lightsaber had cut across her flesh. Obi-Wan moved past her faster than she would have thought possible of the Stewjonan as the landing closed and the ship shot up and out of Tatooine.

"How long before we reach Coruscant?" she asked the captain, a kind man named Ric Olie who had been the pilot for the Queen of Naboo for a number of years now.

"It'll be a few hours yet," Ric said as she meandered herself until she was sitting in one of the empty seats, "you might want to get some rest before we land."

Sabé's lips twitched into a wry smile, but she didn't speak any words to him. Truth be told, she was far too much awake to get any rest. Besides, she had spent a good deal of this mission resting, much to her shame. "I'll be fine," she said.

"Suit yourself," Ric said agreeably with a shrug that she couldn't see and they both fell into a comfortable silence.

Sabé closed her eyes, falling into a deep meditative trance, though still keeping an awareness of her surroundings, not something one would typically do when meditating, but it was better to meditate than to do nothing, as her master had always said. When she finally opened her eyes, she was more than a little annoyed that only four hours had passed, leaving another five to go.

Feeling a need to stretch her legs, Sabé excused herself from the cockpit and made her way slowly down to one of the lower decks, one where private communications could be made. Sabé wasn't too surprised to see Arthree waiting there patiently for her.

"You're Sabé."

The Jedi Knight blinked her bright brown eyes to stare into the equally bright blue eyes of the child that must have been Anakin Skywalker. She could see what Talik had meant by his Force-presence being so bright.

"I am," she said, canting her head slightly in acknowledgment. "Did Talik tell you about me?"

To her surprise, he blushed a deep red to the roots of his blonde-brown hair. "Um…no-"

Arthree beeped a message to her, and she nodded.

"Connect us," she ordered to the astromech before placing a finger to her lips to Anakin as if to ask him to remain silent as she turned back to the monitor and pressed a few buttons until two blue holographic figures came to life.

"Masters," she said, giving a low bow to her superiors, "we are approaching Coruscant and will be on-planet within five hours."

"Very good, Knight Amidala," Mace Windu's voice wavered over their flimsy connection. "Your full report will be given upon your arrival."

"Of course, master," she said, inclining her head slightly before one hologram fizzled out, leaving her with just the image of Master Yoda.

"A great turbulence in the Force I felt," he said solemnly, "pleased I am that survived you did."

"Thank you, Master," she said calmly, though a smile crept onto her face. "I'll be seeing you soon."

And then the connection ended as quickly as it had begun, allowing Sabé's attention to return to the young boy from Tatooine.

"My apologies," she said smoothly, "that was rude of me."

Was it? Anakin blinked his wide eyes curiously at her as she gave him that motherly smile that he could remember so clearly. Anakin was far too used to crass attitudes to even register how some people might not take kindly to such tones. But clearly Sabé was a polite, serene creature; Talik wasn't much like her in that aspect. Anakin couldn't help but stare at her, even though he had seen her face a thousand times.

Her eyes were almost amber with a slight, delicate slant, her lips were curled into an ever-present smile, and her brown hair hung in plaited braids around her face. She was like an older version of Padmé. And then she moved and Anakin gasped as her mechanical arm caught the light.

"Sorry," he said quickly as she shifted her robe quickly to hide it, "I didn't mean to do that."

"Few do," Sabé hummed in agreement, an oddly calculating look in her eyes as she lowered herself to sit across from him on the floor. "Are you cold? Space travel is always the coldest the first time around."

"Padmé gave me this," Anakin said lifting the small blanket that rested over him, but before he had finished talking, Sabé had shook off her own cloak and thrown it over him.

"Wait!" he complained. "I can't take this! It's yours!"

"I'll live," Sabé said dryly, "worry not; death by cold is not something that will be my end."

She said those words with utter surety that Anakin couldn't help but wonder if she truly knew how she would die, and then she smiled brightly at him.

"I believe you were telling me about how you knew my name," she said in a voice that brooked no argument, and Anakin found himself stuttering out the guide that took him away from his nightmares. By the end of it, he was quite red in the face, but thankfully Sabé wasn't laughing. If anything, her face had grown more thoughtful.

The kind of dreams he had described were similar to her own, but in hers there was no one to save her from them, leaving her alone in her own darkness. She bit her lip slightly recalling that dark image of Darth Carina striking her down as if she was a simple padawan. She had had that nightmare many times, but only recently had she actually seen the Sith's face, and it had disturbed her.

Because she was more than certain that it had been her own face staring back.

"You are strong in the Force," she said, reminding herself internally to not get so sidetracked by her thoughts, "it does not surprise me that your dreams would reflect that."

Anakin's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "What's the Force?"

Sabé smiled, being in her element as a teacher to young ones. "The Force is an energy field that lives inside all living things. It binds us to the galaxy. Those who can utilize the Force to a higher degree are the Jedi."

"Like you," Anakin said.

"Like me," she agreed. "But the Force is not limited to just the Jedi, you understand, it exists inside the midi-chlorians of each and every living organism."

"And what are midi-chlorians?" Anakin asked, canting his head slightly to the side.

"Midi-chlorians are these tiny little life forms that live inside of us-"

"There are things living inside of me?" Anakin asked, dumbstruck.

Sabé forced herself to not laugh, as Anakin obviously didn't have much knowledge on the biology of the body. "Yes," she said instead, "the number of Midi-chlorians you have inside you is dependent on your strength in the Force."

"So the more you have, the stronger you are?" Anakin asked in interest.

"Perhaps from a certain viewpoint," Sabé conceded.

"Who has the most?" Anakin couldn't help but ask.

Sabé's lips twisted into a wry smile. "Up until a few days ago, I did."

The boy stared and her looking her up and down, but she couldn't fault him there. She didn't look like much more than a pretty face, her and Aayla both, but her use of the Force was unparalleled by anyone else her age, though she was nowhere near the skill level of her master or any of the masters on the Council.

"Get some rest, Ani," she said, using the nickname that he hadn't even told her, "its going to be a busy day."

Sabé had never been so relieved to see Coruscant than when she disembarked the ship five hours later with Talik on one side and Arthree on the other. All the traffic and the business made her heart swell, because this planet was home.

Senator Palpatine was speaking with her sister's decoy, but Sabé had never liked Palpatine much. On principle, Jedi didn't like politicians too much, but Sabé had one or two that she deemed good and fair.

"It is a great gift to see you alive, Your Majesty," Palpatine said with a respectful bow. "With the communications breakdown, we've become very concerned. I'm anxious to hear your report on the situation. May I present Supreme Chancellor Valorum?"

Sabé had a liking for the Chancellor as well. She had served under her for a time with Master Windu when there had been a threat to his life. They both shared opinions on politics and on Sabé's controversial view of the Order during that time; Sabé deemed him friendly enough and not power-hungry, given his position.

The Chancellor gave a low and polite bow to the (acting) Queen of Naboo. "Welcome, Your Highness. It's an honor to finally meet you in person."

"Thank you, Supreme Chancellor," Yané said regally, her voice holding little feeling.

"I must relay to you how distressed everyone is over the current situation," Chancellor Valorum continued, "I've called for a special session of the Senate to hear your position."

"I am grateful for your concern, Chancellor," the Queen said graciously as she was led to a waiting air taxi by Palpatine with her handmaidens following closely. Jar Jar and Anakin were among those that followed her and Talik gave her master a significant look.

Shouldn't Anakin have come with us? She asked.

Briefing the Council could take longer than we think, Sabé thought back, and there are several things I must speak with Master Yoda about in private.

Talik thought she might tell her, but she was left only with that cryptic remark, much to her irritation.

"Knight Amidala," Chancellor Valorum said with a smile as he clasped her hand with both of his and kissed both of her cheeks as she did the same. "I am relieved to see that you are well."

"I am relieved to be well, Chancellor," Sabé quipped back lightly, "and to be on-planet once more."

His face was one of understanding, but their pleasantries were cut short by Qui-Gon, the infinite sourpuss.

"I must speak with the Jedi Council immediately," he said to Valorum. "The situation has become more complicated."

Valorum nodded seriously. "I understand. They were called into a session the moment they discovered your landing. They are waiting for you."

The four Jedi bowed to him before taking a second air taxi, only this one would be taking them to the Jedi Temple as opposed to the temporary lodgings of the planet-bound politicians.

"How much rest did you get?" Sabé asked her padawan lightly. "You look as though you witnessed the end of the universe." Which was to say, she looked terrible.

Talik sighed. "I just don't sleep well in space, Master, it's nothing, I'm sure I'll catch up on my sleep while we're here."

"I'm sure you will," Sabé said in slight amusement. She was sure that Talik had a very serious relationship with her bed, since she seemed hardly able to drag her from it in the morning, especially to do early meditation, something she hated with every fiber of her being.

"And Master Jinn tells me you need to work on controlling your temper," Sabé added, making Talik groan loudly. Sabé could feel a flicker of amusement coming from Obi-Wan where he sat in front of her, though his body gave no inclination of his humor.

"Don't worry," she continued, "Obi-Wan here was rather bad at anger management as well." She winked at the Twi'lek. "If I recall correctly, he was on his way to Agri-Corps when he finally managed to charm a master into taking him on."

"Wait a second, charm? How did I charm Qu-"

"Details, details," Sabé said evasively with a vague wave of her hand, making Talik giggle. "My point is, everyone has difficulty with controlling their anger, but it is still something that needs to be done for you to become a true Jedi." She smiled kindly. "Who knows, maybe one day you'll become far greater than me, if you can manage to let go of that anger you hold."

The one thing that Qui-Gon could marvel about the sister of the queen, was her ability to inspire and to teach. Perhaps Yoda was right about her abilities being best suited for both battle and teaching. It was a strange combination, and though she was very good at physical and mental defense and offense, he had always wondered if she would be one of those Jedi who chose to not pass on their teaching to the next generation.

He was glad that she had proven him wrong in that aspect, if nothing else.

AN: Fuel you addiction, you lot, and review! Reviews are love and I need lots of love!